Miscellaneous - This Day That Age   

dated May 25, 1957: TTK defends budget

The Finance Minister, Mr. T.T. Krishnamachari, indicated on May 23 his willingness to help the new class of income-tax assessees he had roped in by lowering the income-tax limit, through the grant of additional allowances for children. He said he was also willing to adjust the increase in postcard rates if the burden could be shifted to some other postal service. His own preference, as against that of the post card, was in favour of raising the rate on envelopes. He also indicated his willingness to introduce changes "of a marginal character" in regard to methods of collection of the wealth and expenditure taxes. The Finance Minister, who was replying to the debate in the Rajya Sabha on the general budget, defended both the size of the Second Five-Year Plan and the taxation proposals that had been brought forward to finance the Plan. He said phasing of the Plan did not mean cutting it down, and that its flexibility did not mean stretching it to beyond five years. The Indian tax structure was irrational by any comparison and a beginning had to be made to alter it. With the gradual elimination of top income brackets in the structure of direct taxation, its base had to be broadened by bringing in lower income groups in order to support that structure. Otherwise we would have to rely on indirect taxes alone as Soviet Russia did.

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