The critical responses from the former Finance Minister regarding Nirmala Sitharaman’s recent Union Budget.

Some grave questions asked by Chidambaram ji :

1. The government has introduced Employment Linked Incentives which replaced the previous Production Linked Incentive. The reason was that the latter scheme did not create the kind of jobs the government wanted. So what is the outcome of the PLI therefore we can look ahead to what can be expected of the ELI. Chidambaram ji added it is an interesting idea but it does not inspire confidence.
2. The chief economic advisor said in his economic survey that India’s inflation continued to be low, stable and moving toward the 4% target. Then why has the RBI not revised downward the bank rate fixed in June 2023? He then further said why the Monetary Policy Committee was not willing to revise it downward. He also warned the government that if they don’t take inflation seriously they will be punished more just like the by-election.
3. He explained how the government arrives at a growth rate that is taking a Nominal Growth rate applying a deflator and arriving at the GDP. The government has claimed a growth rate of 8.2% and this year it will be 6.5% to 7% . Everyone must know that the deflator that they adopted for the manufacturing sector last year was 1.7 when wholesale inflation is 3.4, CPI inflation is 5.1 and food inflation is 9.4, how do you adopt a deflator of 1.7 and why are you adopting it?
4. The honourable Finance Minister has said I have given relief I don’t grudge the relief she has given relief but who has she given relief to? the People who move to the new the new tax regime. India does not consist only of these two to three crore people. The bottom 50% population have a yearly consumption expenditure of Rs.36,000 to Rs.50,000 what is the relief given to them?
5. No, I don’t Grudge at all that FM giving relief to Andhra Pradesh or Bihar but what about the other states we are a federal country. this is the death of federalism if you pick and choose among states. you are the union of India, you are the union government, and you are the government of all the states you cannot pick and choose one state and deny relief to another.