Industry Hails Budget As Fiscal Stimulator

The state chapter of Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) and the Federation of Karnataka Chambers of Commerce and Industry(FKCCI) have welcomed the moves initiated by the union finance minister in the Budget for the year 2003-2004.

FKCCI has appreciated the thrust given to the issue of public investments in infrastructure and said that the idea of public-private partnerships would provide the much-needed fiscal stimulus to the national economy.

The proposal to seriously examine the question of a Limited Partnership Act had been overdue and should particularly help small-scale industries. However, the finance minister should have considered total abolition of corporate surcharge, increase of threshold limit and extension of one page return to all non-corporates, the chamber said.

The serious worry still remains on the fiscal deficit which is estimated to be over 5.6 per cent, FKCCI president KN Jayalingappa, , observed.

M Lakshminarayan, the chairman of CII