Union Budget: Industry Body Seeks Relief For Middle Class, Small Traders

Delhi-based association of traders, Chamber of Trade and Industry (CTI), as part of its pre-Budget recommendations, wrote a letter to Union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman seeking relief for middle-class people and small traders.

"All sectors need relief from the government in the budget. Especially the middle class and 20 lakh traders of Delhi have not got any relief in the budget in the last eight years and everyone is hopeful that they will definitely get some relief from this budget," the Delhi-based association said in a release.

The Union Budget 2023-24 is to be presented on February 1, 2023. Like the previous two Union Budgets, Union Budget 2023-24 will also be delivered in paperless form.

The formal exercise to prepare the annual Budget for the next financial year (2023-24) commenced on October 10.

Chairman Brijesh Goyal, on behalf of CTI, said taxpayers in the senior citizens' bracket should get old age benefit on the basis of their taxes.

"Taxpayers in their old age must get social security and retirement benefits based on the income tax paid in the previous years," it said in the release.

Further, for ease of doing business, it recommended the government restore the old limit of cash payment.

"The cash transaction limit has not increased for twenty years. Six years ago, to promote digital transactions, the cash payment limit was reduced from Rs 20,000 to Rs 10,000. The limit of 20 thousand was running for 22 years," it said.

Under section 40A of the Income Tax Act, any payment in cash above Rs 10,000 to any person in a day shall not be allowed as a deduction in the computation of Income.

Among others, the association of traders demanded affordable loans for the middle-class, separate schemes and packages to promote the manufacturing sector and the Make in India initiative, and an export hub to promote trade.

Budget 2023 is likely to be the last full Budget of the Modi government in its second term with the next Lok Sabha election due in April-May of 2024.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)