By IANS,
New Delhi : The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Friday promised a slew of measures for India’s economic growth in its election manifesto. Highlights of its ‘economy grows, India prospers’ policies:
1. Generate employment through massive public spending on infrastructure projects. Complete the implementation of former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee’s dream projects: National Highway Development Project by building 15-20 km of new highways every day; and Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana to link all villages with over 500 people by all-weather roads.
2. Introduce schemes to encourage private industry and services sectors. Ensure a low tax, low interest rate regime.
3. Exempt personal income tax for those earning up to Rs.300,000 per annum. For women and senior citizens, the exemption will be Rs.350,000 per annum. This will benefit over 35 million people.
4. Complete exemption for interest income on bank deposits for all other than corporates and those who have business income.
5. Scrap Fringe Benefit Tax (FBT), which is a source of harassment to employees and employers alike.
6. Abolish CST (central sales tax) and fix a ceiling of 12-14 percent on GST (goods and service tax).
7. Ensure watertight monitoring of regulatory bodies so that the public is secured from companies indulging in fraudulent practices in the stock markets.
8. Construct one million houses for the poor every year; kickstart the real estate sector that is suffering at present. Bring down interest on housing loans to make urban housing affordable.
9. Take firm steps to identify and retrieve Indian money stashed away in foreign banks estimated at Rs.25 lakh crore-Rs.75 lakh crore (Rs.25 trillion to Rs.75 trillion).
10. Boost tourism sector: Identify 50 destinations and develop infrastructure, connectivity. Double foreign tourist arrivals in five years to help generate employment in hospitality industry.
11. Ban foreign direct investment (FDI) in retail sector to help domestic retail trade.