New Delhi :
Acting Finance Minister Piyush Goyal will deliver the Interim Budget speech today in Parliament at 11 am. The speech will include the government's plans for income tax slabs, indirect taxes, agriculture, new trains and more. The Union Interim Budget 2019-20 will be live streamed at Press Information Bureau's YouTube channel here starting 11 am and will be live telecast on Lok Sabha TV.
Piyush Goyal, who is also the Union Railways Minister, will present the Railway Budget 2019 as a part of the Union Budget 2019 today. The Narendra Modi government is expected to announce planned expenditure of Rs 1.6 lakh crore in the Railway Budget 2019. This would be a 148% hike from the 2014 figure. The sector is also focusing on upgrading infrastructure to ensure safety in operations of the vast rail network.
According to the convention, which has always been followed by successive governments in Independent India, an outgoing government does not present a full Budget rather they seek the Parliament’s approval for necessary expenditure for the next three-four months, till the new government is in place and ready to present a full Budget. Whether Goyal junks this convention entirely and launches into myriad new schemes, complete with outlays and financing details – this remains to be seen.
Income tax concessions for individuals, a farm relief package, support for small businesses and possible populist spending measures may be part of the Budget that Finance Minister Piyush Goyal will present Friday as the government makes a last-ditch attempt to woo voters ahead of the general elections. Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led government's sixth and final budget before the polls due by May is supposed to be an interim budget or a Vote on Account.
