2014 Union budget of India

Salient features of the budget

• provided for the development of Smart Cities in India
• provided for irrigation
• 5 New IITs and IIMs and four new AIIMS in India.
• New airports scheme in tier 1 and 2 cities
• Schemes for development of sports across the country.

  Foreign Direct Investment

• FDI cap in Defense and Insurance sector has been increased to 49% from 26%.
• FDI in real estate for low cost housing

  Personal tax and exemption limit

• No changes in personal income tax slabs. But tax exemption limit has been increased to from for those below the age of 60. Income tax exemption limit for senior citizens has been raised to.
• Investment limit under Section 80C has also been increased to from the current.
• Housing loan interest rate deduction limit has been increased to.

  Budget 2014: Highlights of Finance Minister Arun Jaitley’s Budget speech

Reactions

• Former Prime Minister of India, Manmohan Singh reacted on budget saying that "Budget lacks road-maps".
• The Communist Party of India accused the budget as "a recipe for further enriching the rich and impoverishing the poor. "
• Former Chief Minister of Delhi, Arvind Kejriwal stated that "it was a directionless budget with no steps to bring down inflation in the country".
• Sharad Yadav reacted on budget saying that "This Budget shows we are standing where we were. It's like distributing toffees".
• Sonia Gandhi said that Arun Jaitley copied the policies of congress government.
• Rajeev Shukla stated that "This budget is intended for corporate sector and rich people. There is nothing in budget for common man"
• Sudheendra Kulkarni: Smart new cities are welcome. But far bigger challenge is to make old cities smarter. Possible only with Good Governance Reforms.
• Sunil Duggal: The Union Budget 2014-15 was going to be a tough balancing act for Finance Minister Mr. Arun Jaitley, given the precarious state that the Economy was in.
• President of FICCI, Sidharth Birla stated that "The FM has set the ground for repair of the economy. There has been a mix of both short-term and long-term measures geared towards boosting confidence of all key constituents."
• President of CII, Ajay S. Shriram stated that "It has covered many aspects of the population and that is big plus. The finance minister has looked at policies from 2-3 year view and this is a positive direction for higher economic growth."