Assam Finance Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Tuesday presented a Rs 2,350 crore deficit Budget for the 2017-18 fiscal, which focused on infrastructure development, employment generation and announced schemes for boosting the tourism sector in the State.
Budget estimates indicate a receipt of Rs 84,732.16 crore under consolidated fund of the State, of which Rs 70,719.61 crore is on Revenue account and the remaining Rs 14,012.55 crore is under the Capital account.
The Finance Minister said that the Government for the first time merged the Plan and Non Plan heads and that estimates were made as capital and revenue heads. “All employees who were drawing salaries from Plan Head will join those who were drawing salaries from Non Plan heads. Thus the systematic discrimination in the budgeting of salaries of Muster Roll and Work Charge employees have been drawn to a close,” said Sarma.
Another feature of the budget for 2017-18 fiscal is that it does not have any new tax proposal. “I do not wish to put any additional burden on the people in this budget,” said the Minister while adding that the Government proposes to exempt luxury tax in respect of hotels and lodging houses including home stays, providing residential accommodation in rural areas.
To boost the state’s ailing film industry and encourage exhibition of local films, the Finance Minister also proposed to grant 50 percent entertainment tax exemption for a period of three years to permanent multiplexes, which have commenced or commence their commercial operation during specified period provided they give a written undertaking to the effect that they will show Assamese or regional film in one of the screens if such Assamese or regional films are available for screening at that point of time.
The budget also proposed to reduced the cess on green leaf from 15 paisa per kg to 10 paisa per kg for small tea growers in recognition to the contribution of small tea growers in the economy of Assam.
The Budget proposed to increase the production of Muga silk ten times by the year 2016 and allocated Rs 100 crore for the purpose of developing nurseries and host plantations in 500 hectares of government land, 2000 hectares in degraded forest areas and 8000 hectares in private lands during 2017-18 fiscal.
“We will work with families, weavers and local entrepreneurs and interested youths and graduates of the NIFT and other such institutes will be made partners in marketing,” said the Minister.
Considering that fact that the Assam vision document 2016-25 envisages setting up of 100 BPOs in the state, the government decided to give land on long term lease to BPO industry at cheaper rates and decided to demarcate exclusive land parcels for promotion of BPO industry and proposed to give upto 90 percent of the one time expenditure incurred on capital support without any upper ceiling to make Assam an attractive destination for BPO industry.
“Apart from this, the government will also provide 100 percent reimbursement of stamp duty or transfer duty and registration fees paid by the BPO on sale or lease deeds,” he said.
The government also proposed to make the infrastructure in general and in government buildings barrier free considering the renewed focus on Divyangs and said that Rs. 10 crore have been provided in the current budget for making Assam the first ‘barrier free state’-the first one in the country.