New Delhi Mar 28 PTI Middle class feels the heat of high petrol diesel and cooking gas prices and the government should have a relook at the interest rate on savings bank accounts and tax exemption limit NCP MP Praful Patel said on Monday During a discussion on the Appropriation Bill 2022 and the Finance Bill 2022 in the Rajya Sabha Patel said comparing petrol prices of 2008-09 with that of today was not correct as the situation that time across the globe was different He said the Ukraine conflict is going to impact all heads of the budget going forward Middle class feels the heat of high petrol prices diesel prices cooking gas prices and all the general items on the inflation list which we normally see Therefore I feel that at least on the savings account some kind of balancefor people who go for savings specially small people I think we need to have a relook because 3-35 per cent interest certainly does not do justice to anybody Patel said He said the governments official inflation figure is more than six per cent and to beat the inflation interest rates should be increased Again the middle class is the one which is feeling the heat of the tax exemption not being increased year-on-year to keep pace with inflation I feel something needs to be looked at meaningfully at that account also he said The government in the Finance Bill 2022 has kept the tax exemption limit unchanged Patel said the middle class has very little flexibility when it comes to finances They cannot reduce their spending they cannot increase their earnings Most of them resort to minor savings Most of them go to banks Some people do go to a mutual fund but thats a very small number Today banks offer 3-35 per cent compared to the official inflation figure of 6 per cent plus You can imagine very well that an average middle class person cannot beat inflation with the amount of interest In fact the income will be reduced to that extent year-on-year Patel said He said the comparison of current fuel prices with that of 2008-09 is not on the same parameters In 2008-09 there was no Ukraine conflict There were some different situations At the same time the rupee was 40 a dollar right now rupee is around Rs 77 to a dollar There is going to be a major impact on the finances of the government of India No matter how we are going to portray the numbers because these numbers while USD 400 billion of exports have been achieved are very laudable We must also understand that we are going to face an equally higher deficit because of the higher fuel import bill the NCP member said He called for giving incentives for industrialisation in smaller towns for job creation Samajwadi Party member Vishambhar Prasad Nishad said the price of essential drugs has increased and called for making them unaffordable for the lower rung of the society He said while the government has abolished tax on diamond but levies 18 per cent GST on common mans vehicles like bicycles and called for exemption of GST on them BJP member Syed Zafar Islam said the 2022-23 budget is a self-reliant budget and the government is investing in infrastructure which will have multiplier effect on the economy PTI PRS PRS AQS AQS

New Delhi Mar 28 PTI Alleging financial irregularities by the YSRCP-led dispensation in Andhra Pradesh TDP MP Kanakamedala Ravindra Kumar on Monday appealed to the central government to impose financial emergency in the state During a discussion on the Appropriation Bill 2022 and the Finance Bill 2022 in Rajya Sabha Kumar said Andhra Pradesh had spent Rs 111 lakh crore without the approval of the state assembly in 2021 which is about half of the total expenditure budget He said that transactions of Rs 48234 crore -- about one-third of the total budget expenditure -- were carried out without proper accounting and documentation in violation of the treasury code and without informing the state assembly The questionable transaction of Rs 48234 crore is about 730 times that of the alleged Bihar fodder scam This misappropriation is deeply troubling and this is in just one financial year Kumar said He said that there has been diversion of 30 per cent of central funds to unintended items of expenditure and there is utter mismanagement between budget allocation and actual expenditure particularly for the welfare of backward sections Scheduled Caste women and minorities I appeal to the government to do the needful and save the people of Andhra Pradesh from the financial anarchism of the state government and secure their future if necessaryby imposing financial emergency in the state of Andhra Pradesh Kumar said He said the CAG has observed that the actions of the present AP government are in violation of the provisions of the Constitution which stipulates that not even a rupee can be spent without approval of the state legislature The CAG refused to certify one-third of the total financial transactions of AP government for 2021 for the first time in the historythere is financial anarchism in Andhra pradesh to serve the political interest of the ruling establishment in the state Kumar said He said that the present government of AP is unleashing violence against the people of the state through gross misuse of public finances for personal gains Central government should seriously consider imposing financial emergency in the state under Article 360 of the Constitution in the interest of the state of AP Otherwise the present and future of the state will be seriously in danger We cannot keep quiet when the AP government has unleashed a serious attack on our Constitution and Parliament in the form of violations of the act Kumar said PTI PRS SMN