Giving relief to individual taxpayers, the government today raised the income tax exemption limit by Rs 10,000 for general taxpayers, and by Rs 15,000 for senior citizens.

For general taxpayers, income of up to Rs 1.6 lakh per annum for men and Rs 1.90 lakh per annum for women is tax-exempt.

Click here for Cloud Computing

Also Read   Related Stories News Now - Budget lackluster; disappointed K'taka, says Yeddyurappa - Small businesses exempted from book keeping - PSU stocks wealth erodes by Rs 82,000 cr on Budget day - Pension fund ind welcomes move to exempt NPS Trust from STT - Govt slashes customs duty on wind power equipment to 5% - Legal community divided over service tax on legal services

Also Read   Related Stories News Now - Wall Street up on Greece, but gains seen limited - FII-TO-FII: Pantaloon traded at 7% premium - Civic polls: Saffron alliance retains Mumbai, Thane - MCX awaits trading rules in commodity options, indices - Govt to provide incentives for electronic chip manufacturing More

Announcing these measures while presenting the Budget for 2009-10, Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee said his direct tax proposals are revenue-neutral and would not result in any revenue loss.

The present income tax exemption limit is Rs 1.5 lakh for men, Rs 1.8 lakh for women and Rs 2.25 lakh for senior citizens.

Mukherjee also removed the surcharge on income above Rs 10 lakh for personal income tax payers. The surcharge was levied at the rate of 10 per cent on income above Rs 10 lakh.

In another relief to the tax payers, the Minister raised the deduction for maintenance of medical treatment of dependence from Rs 75,000 to Rs 1 lakh. Higher exemption limit will help the taxpayers in meeting the medical needs of dependents.

Meanwhile, he also proposed to introduce Saral-II form to enable the taxpayers to file their returns without difficulty.

As regards the corporate tax, the minister raised the Minimum Alternate Tax to 15 per cent from 10 per cent.

The minister, however, abolished the Fringe Benefit Tax and Commodities Transaction Tax (CTT).

New Ipad Application :Business Standard's all new IPad App Click here to download for free Other Stories      - Wall Street up on Greece, but gains seen limited - FII-TO-FII: Pantaloon traded at 7% premium - Civic polls: Saffron alliance retains Mumbai, Thane - MCX awaits trading rules in commodity options, indices - Govt to provide incentives for electronic chip manufacturing

Tags : I-T exemption | general taxpayers | senior citizens | Union Budget | Pranan Mukherjee   Read Business news in  Advertisements -  Now property search gets more exciting than ever before! -  High Growth Business Opportunities in Africa - Register to explore -  Medium-sized businesses are the engines of a smarter planet. -  Office 365 for professionals and small businesses. -  Earn fuel worth Rs.2400 with Citi -  India's No. 1 Property Site. Click here to know more.. -  Diseases earlier, Saving Costs, Extending Lives. Know More.. -  Get 5% cashback on telephone bills with Citi -  Enjoy the journey as much as the destination. click to know more.. -  Exim Bank Conclave on India - Africa Project Partnership. Know more.. -  Creating Wealth made simple the SIP way. Know more.. -  Only Developer to give a guarantee on time space & rate. -  Buy Your Property with Our Triple Guarantee in India. -  Improve Patient Care & Experience. Click here to know more -  Win a Business Class Ticket to Europe..Know more.. -   Introduce a New Automotive Luxury Car.. know more