Budget to help wipe out black money, corruption: Gadkari

Terming the Union Budget as "revolutionary", Union Minister Nitin Gadkari today said it would not only wipe out black money and corruption but also usher in transparency in political parties and spur country's economic growth.
The senior BJP leader and Road Transport, Highways and Shipping Minister said it was "pro-farmers" and "pro-poor" and would push the agriculture growth rate by at least 2 per cent.
He also said the infrastructure space has been a major beneficiary of the budget and accordingly the government is giving top-most priority to sectors like highways, waterways and multi-modal hubs.
"The black economy will be wiped out as there would be no transactions in cash over Rs 3 lakh. This provision will curb illegal transactions and would result in huge revenue. Honest people will thrive, there will be boost to small scale industries and service class will benefit," the Minister said.

He said transparency will come with the eradication of black money, and corruption will automatically end.
The Minister said, "Revolutionary changes will not only occur in industry, agriculture but political parties will be transparent as there were three blackspots -- cash, caste and criminals. People used to fight elections on the basis of money power. Now honest will come in politics and there will be transparency in political parties."

He further said that India as the world's largest democracy was on the way to qualitative changes.
The Minster said not only agriculture growth rate will reach over six per cent but bank interests will reduce and GDP will get a boost.

He said with development work in villages, the pressure on the urban economy will ease.
"There are many provisions to boost agriculture economy. It will arrest migration of rural population to urban areas and create employment opportunity in villages itself," Gadkari said while hailing the budget, presented today in the Lok Sabha.
He said, "Agriculture has been given a major thrust with a huge Rs 1 lakh crore hike in the credit target for the next fiscal to Rs 10 lakh crore and is bound to push agriculture growth rate by at least 2 per cent."
It will give a push to micro irrigation, drip irrigation, he said adding, there are several special provisions for agriculture which will result in prosperity of villages and creation of employment there, the Minister said.

Gadkari said Budget also accords priority to housing which is a core sector and both urban and rural areas will see the development of the sector.