State budget: No clarity on infrastructure

No clarity on infrastructure
The Times of India

The best news perhaps is the decision to continue with tax incentives for some of the industries even under the VAT regime.

The proposed three-year maintenance contract for state highways is a welcome move and so is the announcement to take a systematic and planned approach on the status of roads and the amount spent on them. I am glad government has moved fast and set aside Rs 109 crore for Bangalore Metro Rail. This will no doubt send positive signals to investors eyeing the Garden City.

But there is no clarity on infrastructure development. The IT industry justly expected that its demands would find some response through the budget. But the budget has disappointed us. Other than the proposal to build diversion roads to speed up the IT corridor, there is no other commitment. Further, allocation for roads is also not sufficient.

There is no sign of involvement of the community in development of this great city. We should take pride in overall development but there is no provision for major stakeholders to take active part in this. While it is pertinent that the government extends the scope of the telemedicine project implemented jointly with ISRO, funds allocated for the purpose may be insufficient.

Special Entry Tax and Entry Tax should vanish in the VAT regime once all states are in line with VAT implementation.

Bob Hoekstra, CEO, Philips Software Centre