Not everybody gets an appointment with the FM to press upon him a petition to do this or that in the Budget. That’s a privilege extended to corporate fat cats and well-connected interest groups. Express sought out some sections and asked them to make a few suggestions to Jaitley
Housewife
Tax booze sky high
Premalatha Rani is a mother of two college-going children. She is troubled by the amount of money she spends on their travel to and from college. The cost of petrol is therefore significant for her. She is also troubled by the overly easy availability of alcohol. Making booze expensive would make men come home sooner and improve the support system at home, she says. Since her household is on a tight budget already, Premalatha Rani is hoping for a cut in cooking gas prices and taxes on kitchen appliances. “There’s a cash crunch in my house after the note ban. We spend on essentials, not luxuries. Petrol should be cheaper. I want the government to tax alcohol high so that it’s not within easy reach and the men come home sooner.”
— Premalatha Rani, 48, housewife
Beer lovers
Why should beer be cheaper in Goa? Not fair
Sachin Gahlawat is a member of the Bangalore Beerlovers, who meet up at the city’s pubs such as Toit, Arbor and Biere Club to “try one of mankind’s finest creationss”. Surprisingly, Gahlawat didn’t mind the fact that alcohol prices are increased without fail every year. But the rates have to be uniform. He says all states should levy the same taxes on alcohol. As his father is from an Army background, Sachin knows that it is the heavy taxes that make beer expensive, not the base price.
Beer rates are already high, which is due to the taxes. In some states the taxes are really low. The government should make tax rates uniform in all states. If they do increase prices, it should be the same for every state.
— Sachin Gahlawat, member, Bangalore Beerlovers
Doctors
Priority No. 1: Health insurance for all
Dr Vivek Jawali is a cardiothoracic surgeon in Bengaluru. He is appalled by the out-of-pocket expenditure patients have to incur on illnesses. He wants stronger insurance cover for them. As a cardiologist who deals with stents regularly, he is also concerned about the cost of biomedical equipment. Among developing countries, India spends the lowest on healthcare. Doctors wish medical equipment to be made exempt from import duty. They want more spending on infrastructure upgradation, improving penetration through telemedicine and mobile hospitals, additional funds for micro-insurance health schemes.
Startups
I wanna my hand held
Start ups operating in the digital space are looking for a little handholding by Jaitley. They are looking for tax concessions for startups, especially for those in the cashless space. People are having to pay charges for using cards. The government needs to figure out a way to lower the tariff for the use of credit and debit cards, says Bipin Chandra, ex-secretary of the Hyderabad IT and Software Employees Association. There are lot of startups in the cashless space. Some concessions and a little handholding is needed.
Truck owners
One diesel price everywhere
Truck transporters think they are the wheels of the economy. If their costs rise, everything becomes costlier. So if you take care of the truckers, you take care of everything. That said, AP Lorry Owners Association general secretary Y V Eswara Rao says the business is still reeling under the impact of demonetisation and they expect three things from the FinMin: (1) uniform diesel price (less than D60 a litre, thank you); (2) removal of toll gates; and (3) GST implementation
Tribal welfare
Spl scheme for nutrition of tribal newborn
If Arun Jaitley wants to improve the lot of the indigenous people of India, he must start with the children, says Theophil Gomango, convenor of the Indigenous People’s Forum, Odisha. Financial resources must be made available to Accredited Social Health Activists to make it easier for them to travel to remote locations to provide emer-gency medical care to newborns who remain vulnerable in the absence of nutrition in remote pockets. Existing health schemes are not good enough for tribals.
SmeS
We need somebody to mother MSMEs
Still recovering from the demonetisation shock, small and medium enterprises are unable to repay their term loans. What they need right now is a six-month breather from loan repayment. Yagnanarayana M N, general secretary of Laghu Udyog Bharati, Karnataka says the huge collateral demanded by banks is discouraging to MSME entrepreneurs.
Coffee planters
Why do taxmen like coffee?
Govindappa Jayaram’s family have been coffee planters for six generations. Coffee produce is taxed at various stages till it reaches the consumer. Jayaram wants Arun Jaitley to consider coffee up to the stage of curing as agricultural produce and therefore not taxed under Rule 7B(1).
Labour
Make the minimum wage G100/hour
The labour unions’ foremost demand is an increase in daily wages. They want PF made compulsory and better housing schemes. “I want to see if the government will enhance our wages. After all, we sweep, clean and build this country,” says S Balan, an advocate for labour rights.
Pensioners
Wanted: A rebate on travel expenses
A 75-year-old former employee of SBI, C S Rao’s agenda for Arun Jaitley has health at the top. He feels that the government should offer a rebate on the medical expenses of pensioners, particularly on airfares for senior citizens travelling for treatment. “We have to book spot tickets while travelling for treatment. The fares are exorbitantly high and most of the time non-refundable... We must have a rebate on medical expenses.
— C S Rao, member, SBI Pensioners Assn, Bhubaneswar
Salaried worker
Separate exemptions for education loans
Arun Kumar Raha is a senior superintendent at the Biju Patnaik International Airport in Bhubaneswar and the branch secretary of the Airports Authority of India Employees Union. The 53-year-old official wants higher education loans to be removed from Section 80 (C) and put under a separate section of exemptions specific to education loans. Once put in another slot, parents would be encouraged to go in for bigger loans too.
Craftsmen
Insurance for artisans’ eyes
Devi Nanda is the president of the Puri Handicrafts Cooperative Society. He says vision is a craftsperson’s biggest asset. He wants a general health insurance for handicraft artisans, and a specific one for eye care. “A craftsperson’s vision is affected the most due to long hours of work. There must be an incentive for artisans to remain devoted to their craft and it can only be through eye care,” he says. I want Budget 2017 to take care of my eyes and of people from my vocation.
— Devi Nanda, president, Puri Handicrafts Cooperative Society
University teachers
Let’s have special funds for varsity labs
Arun Jaitley’s budget should make a special financial allotment for development of laboratories in state universities and colleges, says Santosh Tripathy, All Odisha University Teachers Association president. If research in universities has to be sound, good laboratories are a necessity. Presently, the funds being sanctioned under the Rashtriya Uchchatar Shiksha Abhiyan are not sufficient.
Temple priests
Health insurance for priests
Preserving religious shrines that are listed as monuments is not enough; Budget 2017-18 must also look after those who serve there, says Biranchi Narayana Pati, secretary of the Brahmana Nijog Samiti of the Lingaraj Temple in Bhubaneswar. Since servitors in temples are not covered under the health insurance schemes of the government, he wants one such programme to be laid down in the Budget. “Although special budgetary provisions are made for the upkeep of ancient temples, there has been no scheme for temple servitors although we have been associated with temple rituals for decades,” he says. Priests have no job security, so getting loans is difficult. The government should come up with a special scheme for education of servitors’ children.
Florists
Let there be flowers in the Budget
Flower merchants like people to be happy. If they aren’t, they wouldn’t buy flowers. As Arun Jaitley gives his finishing touches to the Budget, florist Vittal Kumar, secretary of the Rajiv Gandhi Wholesale Flower Merchants Association of Vijayawada, has only one request. Don’t do anything like demonetization. The withdrawal of high-denomination currency notes almost hit the florists’ business, he says. If anything, he hopes that there will be deep tax cuts in the Budget so that people will be happy enough to buy flowers.