Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman presents her first budget. It has been one hour and given below are the major declaration relating to housing, railway, and infrastructure.
Additional deduction on loans upto March 31 2020 for buying affordable houses giving RS 7 lakh benefit to home buyers
Lower rate of 25% so far only applicable to companies with turnover of ₹250 crore. Propose to increase this limit to companies with annual turnover of ₹400 crore. This will cover 99.3% of companies.
GST rate on electric vehicles already proposed to be lowered to 5%. Additional income tax deduction of ₹1.5 lakh on interest on loans taken to purchase electric vehicles.
To resolve the angel tax issue, startups will not be subject to any scrutiny in respect to valuation. Funds raised by startups will not require any scrutiny by the I-T department.
Additional deduction of ₹1.5 lakh for interest paid on loans for affordable housing borrowed upto March 31, 2020. This will come up to enhanced interest reduction of upto ₹3.5 lakh on loans for affordable homes.
PAN and Aadhaar to be interchangeable, and to allow those without PAN to file income tax by using Aadhaar number. Faceless and anonymous assessment system for income tax being rolled out this year in phases.
35 crore LED bulbs have been distributed through Ujala Yojana, leading to a cost-saving of ₹18,341 crore annually. India is going to be free of incandescent bulbs.
A massive programme for railway station modernisation to be launched.
Over 81 lakh houses at investment of Rs 4.83 lakh crore have been sanctioned and construction has started in about 41 lakh houses, under PMAY-Urban. More than 95% of all cities have declared themselves open defecation free.
Rashtriya Swachchta Kendra to be inaugurated at Gandhi Darshan on October 2, 2019.
Metro Rail initiatives to be enhanced by encouraging PPPs and faster completion. Dedicated freight corridor is almost complete.
Investment by FIIs and FDIs in debt securities in infrastructure debt funds to be allowed. Minimum public shareholding in listed companies can be increased from 25% to 35%, says the Minister, saying this is being considered.
Government will do a restructuring of the national highway programme. In the second phase of Bharat Mala, States will be helped to develop State highways.
The Minister proposes ₹50 lakh crore investment for Railway infrastructure between 2018 and 2030, and using public-private partnerships unleash faster development, completion of tracks, passenger freight services.
Recommendations of high-level committee on retiring old power plants, and addressing the under-utlilisation of power plants will be taken up now. A package for power sector tariffs and reforms will be announced soon.
Government will do a restructuring of the national highway programme. In the second phase of Bharat Mala, States will be helped to develop State highways.”
“Government envisions using rivers for cargo transport.”
The Minister proposes ₹50 lakh crore investment for Railway infrastructure between 2018 and 2030, and using public-private partnerships unleash faster development, completion of tracks, passenger freight services.
The Minister proposes a modern tenancy law. Loans of upto ₹1 crore to be given to MSMEs for ease of access.
Government will create a payment platform for MSMEs to enable them to pay bills, and save time.