The Hindu : Karnataka / Bangalore News : Loan waiver a carbon copy of my scheme: Kumaraswamy Union budget 2008: reactions

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Loan waiver a carbon copy of my scheme: Kumaraswamy Union budget 2008: reactions

Bangalore Bureau

BJP terms Union Budget ‘communal’ and inflationary

‘It has failed to address the burning issue of price rise’
‘No budgetary provision for improvement of Bangalore’s infrastructure’

BANGALORE: “The scheme offering relief to farmers through crop loan waiver in the Budget is a carbon copy of the programme announced by my government,” the former Chief Minister, H.D. Kumaraswamy told The Hindu, referring to his government’s scheme of waiving crop loans up to Rs. 25,000 for all sections of farmers.

“I do not want to criticise the Budget by saying that it is an election-driven one, and would like to congratulate the United Progressive Alliance Government for looking at farmer’s problems,” he said. However, Mr. Kumaraswamy says the crop loan waiver scheme will have little impact in Karnataka.

“They should have extended the cut off date from March 31, 2007 to March 2008,” he said, adding that the scheme should have been extended to include farmers with larger land holdings too, and should have addressed the issue of rising prices of agricultural inputs. Another major drawback of the Budget is that it has not made any budgetary provision for the improvement of Bangalore’s infrastructure “that the Prime Minister always talks about.”

Janata Dal (Secular) spokesperson Y.S.V. Datta said the Budget has not offered any measures to control inflation, and the benefits it offers could be offset by inflation. “The Kumaraswamy government offered much more for farmers within its limited capacity”.

Criticised

The Bharatiya Janata Party has termed the Union Budget 2008-09 as communal, inflationary and anti-common man. In separate statements, BJP national general secretary Ananth Kumar and Karnataka general secretary S. Suresh Kumar ridiculed the Union Budget.

Mr. Ananth Kumar said the Budget failed to address the burning issue of price-rise which has been affecting crores of people in the country.

Given the steep increase in prices during the UPA regime, the Budget should have raised the Income Tax exemption limits by more than what it has done now, he said.

The BJP leader said the allocation for the minority community has been doubled while that for the SC/STs and Backward Classes and other underprivileged sections had seen only a marginal increase. He alleged that the UPA has again revealed its “communal and anti-secular” credentials and the principle of social equity has been thrown to the winds.

While the UPA Government has announced a slew of populist measures, the Finance Minister needs to explain to the country how he proposes to “walk the talk.” He has grandly announced the waiver of farmers’ loans, but has failed to show how he would mobilise resources for this, Mr. Ananth Kumar alleged.

“It is another in the long list of promises and slogans that the Congress is famous for, like Garibi Hatao and NREGP, with no real intention to fulfil any of these promises,” he said.

Mr. Suresh Kumar termed the budget as an election gimmick.

For Karnataka, the Finance Minister’s Budget is like rubbing salt into the wounds caused by the Railway minister. The Centre had showed step-motherly treatment towards Karnataka by not sanctioning any new projects, barring the allocation of Rs. 100 crore to Mysore university.

Hailed

Meanwhile, a large number of leaders in the Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee, including its president M. Mallikarjun Kharge hailed the Union Budget for giving a new impetus to the all-round development of the economy and welfare of the people with an emphasis on farmers, the houseless, the women and the rural masses.

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