Denouncing the pro-monopoly anti people budget CITU urged. Despite demand of the entire trade union movement, the exemption limit of the income tax has not been raised affecting the salaried workers and employees most and compelling even the unskilled workers in the organised sector to pay income tax. Simultaneously, while talking big on tax compliance, the finance minister remained absolutely silent and indulgent on criminal tax evasion by the big business lobby leading to accumulation of huge direct tax arrears to the tune of Rs.41000 crore as noted by CAG.

While denying the salaried employees and workers any relief, the budget of the BJP government has liberally showered concessions to tax evaders like reduction in the Minimum Alternate Tax(MAT) by two and half per cent and many others.

The budget targeted the workers and the common people for expenditure-control exercise and reduced the interest payable on General Provident Fund of the mass of the central government and state government employees, which is also indicative of similar attack on the Employees’ Provident Fund in the days to come. The budget has also indicated drastic reduction in manpower in government offices through "reassessment and review of norms of creation of posts" and abolishing thousands of vacant posts. Subsidies on food and essentials supplied through PDS and on fertiliser have been drastically slashed down.

The Sweadeshi government of the day has not faulted in increasing the excise duty burden on Indian products by Rs3250 crore while reducing the customs duty on the import considerably to the tune of Rs 1400 crore—all in the name of rationalisation, thereby deliberately putting the Indian industries in competitive disadvantage vis-à-vis the foreign producers.

The Finance minister talked big in his budget speech in reviving the health of the financial institution through privatisation courtesy Narasimham Committee and Verma panel report but kept absolutely silent on the recovery of the huge Rs.58000 crore of "non performing asset" of the Nationalised banks, usurped by the big business houses with impunity. These big business houses are the biggest tax evaders as well, but still the finance minister has liberally allowed them to get their excise duty obligation assessed on the basis of their own declaration on the value of their output and the system of separate assessment by the excise deptt has been done away with.

The budget has reiterated its decision not to revive the sick PSUs and push them to closure. It has also repeated its commitment to sell out precious wealth of the country through outright privatisation of profitable public sector units. The assets of the PSUs would be sold out to pay for killing employment through VRS etc.

The budget took no measure for employment generation in the face of sky-rocketting unemployment.

The budget sought to cheat the people by imposing some tax on farmhouses and the finance minister’s categorical statement on excluding the income of the farm house on agricultural operation from the said tax net itself would give the big land lords and farmhouse owners the escape route for tax evasion.

While talking big on industrial growth, huge concession given to venture capital would promote speculation and gambling rather than employment generating productive activity.

The budget did practically nothing on developmental activities, poverty alleviation, infrastructure and sough to mislead the people by talking about creating some funding agencies like last years’ budget without significant provision for resources. As a result, poverty will continue to increase, with mounting unemployment and aggravating industrial sickness pushing the whole economy towards disaster. The recovery in the economy as talked about by the minister is bound to be illusory if the same policy continues.

Despite burgeoning fiscal deficit, the finance minister preferred to lose revenues by liberal concessions to rich landlord and big business while squeezing the mass of the people with heavy burden of so called austerity measures.

In fine the budget can be summed up as budget for the MNCs, big business and the speculators and its is atrocious so far as the common people and the country’s future is concerned.