Karnataka announces farm loans at 0% interest

BANGALORE (PTI): The Congress government in Karnataka on Friday announced loans to farmers at zero per cent up to Rs 2 lakh and enhancement of limit for creamy layer in backward classes by Rs 1 lakh, as it sought to implement key election promises less than two months into office. Presenting the "revised" 2013-14 budget in the legislative assembly — the BJP government had unveiled the first in February before being voted out — chief minister Siddaramaiah said it would be at the interest rate of one per cent for Rs 2 lakh to Rs 3 lakh from cooperative institutions. Earlier, short term loan up to Rs 1 lakh was provided at zero per cent interest and at one per cent interest from Rs 1 lakh to Rs 3 lakh. Siddaramaiah, who has the distinction of presenting seven budgets in the past and kept the finance portfolio himself this time, announced that the creamy layer limit of backward classes would be enhanced from the existing Rs 3.5 lakh to Rs 4.5 lakh. "Caste wise, social and education survey of all castes will be undertaken through Permanent Backward Classes Commission", he said. The chief minister announced reduction of sales tax on diesel from 16.75 per cent to 15.65 per cent. "With this tax reduction at current prices, the price of diesel would come down by 51 paise per litre at Bangalore", Siddaramaiah said. The government proposed to increase the rate of additional excise duty by 16 per cent to 40 per cent across all the 17 slabs. He said relief and measures for additional resource mobilisation along with effective compliance and enforcement measures are expected to fetch additional Rs 1452 crore. VAT rates which had been increased from five per cent to 5.5 per cent, and from 14 per cent to 14.5 per cent for a period of one year from August 2012 was proposed to be continued beyond July 31 this year, Siddaramaiah said. The budget had something to cheer for schoolgirls, women and transgenders. To encourage enrolment and attendance of girls in first standard in government schools, Rs 2 would be given to girls for each day's attendance. The government intends to provide scholarship and free education to students, whose parents are affected with HIV/Leprosy, for higher education, according to the budget, which also said free ten sanitary napkin pads would be provided to 32.50 lakh females. A new scheme called "Manaswini" would be introduced to provide monthly pension of Rs 500 to the unmarried women below poverty line who have crossed the age of 40 years and for divorced women below the poverty line. A new scheme "Mythri" would be launched for providing monthly pension of Rs 500 to transgenders. Siddaramaiah said the total receipts are estimated to be Rs 1,20,717 crore during 2013-14, while the total expenditure is estimated to be Rs 1,21,611 crore consisting of revenue expenditure of Rs 97,391 crore and capital expenditure of Rs 18,380 crore and debt repayment of Rs 5,840 crore. "Revenue surplus is expected to be Rs 596 crore", he added.