The New Nation - Internet Edition

Staff Reporter

The Council of Advisers is expected to approve the proposed budget for fiscal 2008-09 today bringing a few changes in it including raise in the income tax exemption limit for individual taxpayers.

The president will promulgate an ordinance to pass the budget tomorrow following its approval by the Council of advisers as a new financial year begins on July 1.

Finance Adviser Dr Mirza Azizul Islam proposed the Tk 99,962 crore budget on June 9 through his televised speech.

In absence of parliament that was supposed to discuss and approve the budget, the Government invited written and online feedbacks from people on it. The authorities, however, received 542 recommendations within the stipulated time (by June 16) from various quarters.

Officials in the Finance and Planning Ministries told this correspondent that they have minutely examined the suggestions of people as well as stakeholders.

The Finance Adviser also held several meetings with the high level officials discussing efficacy of the suggestions.

The officials indicated that they were considering a proposal to raise the income tax exemption limit for the individual taxpayers.

For consideration by the Advisory Council, some new measures on one or two sectors would be proposed, which was earlier excluded due to intra-sector conflicts.

One-third of the new budget will be used to fight soaring food prices that have left the country's poor vulnerable.

The budget will increase monthly stipends for the poor when it takes effect from July 1. The Government would sell three million tons of rice at a subsidized rate, and that in some cases it would be given away for free.

The new budget offered other measures designed to help the country's poor, including a program to pay for two million unemployed people to work for 100 days.