Mumbai, Feb 1 (IANS) Maharashtra Congress President Harshwardhan Sapkal on Sunday said that the budget presented by the Narendra Modi government is no different from the previous budget.

“This budget is not meant to satisfy any social class, but is limited to big figures and claims,” he said.

He alleged that figures have been manipulated in the budget, and it is completely directionless.

“A solid policy is required for large-scale employment generation in the country, but there is no clear direction for employment generation in this budget. No concrete provision has been made in the interests of farmers. No relief has been given to the employed class and the middle class, who pay income tax. Achieving the declared growth rate targets also seems difficult, and this budget of the central government is limited to only announcements,” said Sapkal.

Sapkal stated that due to demonetisation and GST, the small, medium and large enterprises of the country have been completely weakened, adding that this sector has not had any solid development till now, and it has not got any solid support from this budget either.

“Most of the employment generation in the country is from this sector, but the government has completely ignored this reality. Unemployment has increased on a large scale during the tenure of the Modi government, and according to the latest data, one out of two graduates is unemployed, unemployment has gone up to more than 50 per cent,” he said.

He added that the Modi government has failed in terms of investment and employment generation.

“India is an agricultural country, yet this budget has disappointed the farmers. The target of doubling farmers’ income has not been met in the last 12 years. On the contrary, the cost of farming has doubled, agricultural produce is not getting fair prices, no concrete decision is being taken on the minimum support price, and farmer suicides are on the rise. There is no concrete provision in the budget on these serious issues. The government should understand that farmers’ problems cannot be solved by paying 6 thousand rupees annually,” remarked Sapkal.

Sapkal said the government is claiming that 25 crore people have been lifted out of poverty in 10 years, but the reality is that 80 crore people are still being given 5 kg of grain.

“How did the poverty of 25 crore people end up in this way? This is a big question. It is purely a juggernaut of statistics. The price of gold has reached two lakh rupees per tola, and the price of silver has reached four lakh rupees per kg, but the government has no plan to control these prices. There is no concrete policy to control inflation,” he commented.

According to Sapkal, the central government is under a heavy debt burden. Schemes are being run with loans, but this does not show any improvement in the standard of living of our people.

He said that income and wealth inequality in India today has reached historic levels.

“About 58 per cent of the country’s total income goes to the top 10 per cent, while only 15 per cent goes to the bottom 50 per cent. About 40 per cent of the country’s total wealth is concentrated in the hands of only the top 1 per cent. This is not just a statistic, but a situation that shows a deep imbalance in the economic structure of the country. There is not even a single word in this budget about removing this inequality,” he noted.

–IANS

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