Budget Special 2017: Four thumbs up from this Aam Aadmi Party

Chandrakant D Shah 77yearold retired technician Budget takeaway Reduction in medical expenses because of Aadharbased health cards Arun Kejriwal 44yearold advocate Budget takeaway Reduction of income tax by 5 and halving of the customs duty on LNG Yatharth Kejriwal 14yearold student Budget takeaway Autonomy to colleges through UGC reforms and Varsha Kejriwal 44yearold entrepreneur Budget takeaway Rise in credit limit for farmers will reduce veggie pricesWhen the Finance Minister began to read out the Union Budget yesterday the Kejriwal family in Kandivli West tuned in to see how the announcement would affect their financial lives in the year ahead44yearold Arun Kejriwal who is an advocate is happy with the income tax relief provided in the budget especially after demonetisation After demonetisation every working person in this country was expecting some relief in income tax and duty charges The 5 per cent reduction of income tax in the middleclass income group of Rs 25 lakh to Rs 5 lakh and halving of the customs duty on LNG to 25 per cent is a big relief for a family like ours and also gives us an opportunity to save our hardearned money said ArunEvaders wont quitAruns 77yearold uncle Chandrakant D Shah is seemingly less optimistic about the tax relief but only because of evaders He said Though the government has reduced the income tax it will not encourage those who try to hide their income to pay the tax Shah however hopes the government will make railway stations in Mumbai friendlier for the elderly Being a senior citizen it gets very difficult for me to use Mumbais local trains Even if 10 of Mumbais train stations are made seniorcitizen friendly then it will make our lives easier said ShahBut he is happy about the introduction of Aadharbased health cards for senior citizens Every month my family spends R5000 on my medical expenses As such I dont see any major changes in the budget for senior citizen but still the Aadharbased health card may lead to some subsidy in my medical bills said ShahFor Arun the introduction of head post offices as front offices for passport services is another welcome step Earlier people had to struggle from one place to other for a passport Now at least we can issue our passports from the nearest head post office which is a welcome step he said Arun also welcomed the move to drop surplus charges for booking tickets on IRCTCShah however was impressed with the governments move to limit political transactions It is a bold move by the government I dont know if any previous government has ever thought of such transparency in political funding and limiting the donation to R2000 from one source said ShahUGC reforms welcomeMeanwhile 14yearold Yatharth Aruns son said his takeaway from the budget was the announcement to give more autonomy to colleges by bringing in UGC reforms The teenager said that the move has made him rethink his plan of going abroad for further studiesIn Mumbai there are few autonomous institutes that stand out from other colleges in terms of imparting a good standard of education The decision of giving independence to various colleges and institutes has inspired me to take up higher education in our country A digital platform for giving marksheets school leaving certificates and degrees will also reduce our burden said YatharthEmpowering womenYatharths mother Varsha a 44yearold entrepreneur expressed satisfaction over the provision to empower women I run a box manufacturing business and had always wondered why women entrepreneurs are deprived of benefits in businesses But thankfully this year the budget gives a priority to the women entrepreneurs also said VarshaShe added Every month I try to save money from the limited budget of our house ndash Rs 20000 to Rs 25000 but due of the changing price of vegetables and other grocery items it never happens But I think I would be able to save some money now as the government has given a R10 lakhcrore credit target for farmers