<p><em>By Prateek Mehta</em></p>.<p>Clearly a budget that tried really hard. There are some clear positives announced in this budget. The commitment to doubling the rural income by 2022, Increased allocation to infra development, education and skill development, science and technology. These are interventions that will impact the trajectory of the economy for the long term. The increased disinvestment target also iterates the commitment to reforms. The big announcement on LIC IPO will be something that is good for the financial markets. Applaud the vision of the government and finance minister on these counts. The changes in the tax code are also significant. I think it will be difficult for taxpayers to choose the regime. Depending on the stage of life, they might have deductions across sections because of investments, home loans, Sections 80 (C, D, E, G, and their sub-sections). It will also be important to understand if a taxpayer can do a flip between regimes or not. Overall, it is a good attempt to put more money in the hands of the taxpayers. But we will need to read the fine print before making the choices and rejoicing on this.DDT being abolished and depositor insurance hike to 5L is a very welcome move. The dividend option of Mutual funds and also the dividend generated via stocks might become unattractive for a lot of investors from a tax perspective. Possibly selling systematically will become more tax efficient. Also, appreciate the moves on the start-up side. ESOPs not being treated as a prerequisite for a 5-year window is positive. I would have ideally preferred the tax liability to moved only to the point of liquidity as the liquidity cycles are long in start-ups. Moving the limits on Audit requirements is also positive. As an economy that desperately needs to encourage the growth of capital markets via retail participation, not addressing and removing LTCG in the budget was a disappointment. Increased customs duty on medical equipment might impact the cost of those treatments for Indians - more expenditure on healthcare. Finally, as a marathon-runner, not too happy about the increased customs duty on footwear!!</p>.<div><p dir="ltr"><em>(Prateek Mehta, Chief Business Officer, Scripbox)</em> </p></div>
<p><em>By Prateek Mehta</em></p>.<p>Clearly a budget that tried really hard. There are some clear positives announced in this budget. The commitment to doubling the rural income by 2022, Increased allocation to infra development, education and skill development, science and technology. These are interventions that will impact the trajectory of the economy for the long term. The increased disinvestment target also iterates the commitment to reforms. The big announcement on LIC IPO will be something that is good for the financial markets. Applaud the vision of the government and finance minister on these counts. The changes in the tax code are also significant. I think it will be difficult for taxpayers to choose the regime. Depending on the stage of life, they might have deductions across sections because of investments, home loans, Sections 80 (C, D, E, G, and their sub-sections). It will also be important to understand if a taxpayer can do a flip between regimes or not. Overall, it is a good attempt to put more money in the hands of the taxpayers. But we will need to read the fine print before making the choices and rejoicing on this.DDT being abolished and depositor insurance hike to 5L is a very welcome move. The dividend option of Mutual funds and also the dividend generated via stocks might become unattractive for a lot of investors from a tax perspective. Possibly selling systematically will become more tax efficient. Also, appreciate the moves on the start-up side. ESOPs not being treated as a prerequisite for a 5-year window is positive. I would have ideally preferred the tax liability to moved only to the point of liquidity as the liquidity cycles are long in start-ups. Moving the limits on Audit requirements is also positive. As an economy that desperately needs to encourage the growth of capital markets via retail participation, not addressing and removing LTCG in the budget was a disappointment. Increased customs duty on medical equipment might impact the cost of those treatments for Indians - more expenditure on healthcare. Finally, as a marathon-runner, not too happy about the increased customs duty on footwear!!</p>.<div><p dir="ltr"><em>(Prateek Mehta, Chief Business Officer, Scripbox)</em> </p></div>
