In a statement released today Ms Jayalalithaa said that the general budget 2010 came at a time when the whole world was going through a major financial and economic crisis and all hopes were on a resilient India. It was an opportunity for the union finance minister Pranab Mukherjee to wave his wand and unfold a forward-looking blueprint that would have set the tone for the next four to five years. Unfortunately, Mukherjee had chosen to be rather staid and unspectacular in his approach. The result was a missed opportunity that was tall on rhetoric but short on imagination, especially in Part- A of the budget.  

Ms Jayalalithaa pointed out that some steps had been taken to provide a helping hand to the tottering Agriculture sector through some sops like interest subvention for those paying up loans on time, extension of debt waiver by six months and additional outlay for irrigation. But the investments planned in the field of agriculture were surprisingly low for a nation the size of India, thereby smacking of tokenism. The offer of direct subsidy to farmers was a good move, but it had been offset by the reduction in fertilizer subsidy.  

Predictably reflecting the UPA's priorities, Industry had been given precedence over Agriculture and it was this that was reflected by the upswing in the share markets. Ms Jayalalithaa welcomed the allocation of 200 crore rupees for combating the pollution problem in Tiruppur. However, it would have been fitting if similar allocations had been made for other polluting industries like leather as well, which had rendered several areas of the country arid and unproductive, she said.  

Ms Jayalalithaa said that the finance minister while presenting his budget for 2010-2011 appeared to have taken a leaf from the AIADMK's election manifesto prepared for the last Lok Sabha elections with regard to direct taxes by extending welcome income tax relief to the middle class. However, while the AIADMK had proposed total exemption of income tax for annual incomes upto 5 lakh rupees, which was warranted given the present cost of living index, Pranab Mukherjee had restricted the total exemption only to 1.6 lakh rupees. But by expanding the first tax slab to 5 lakh rupees, the middle class could heave a small sigh of relief.  

Ms Jayalalithaa pointed out that right through his budget speech Mukherjee was harping on the need to control prices. But by increasing excise duty on petrol and diesel, the finance minister had ended up providing impetus for a price sprial once again. Further, nothing had been done to address some of the major causes for the price sprial like hoarding and future trading in essential commodities. Little had also been done on the expenditure management front, which was another cause for unbridled price rise.  

Practically little had been done to improve India's anti-terror infrastructure, which had repeatedly been found wanting and was badly in need of overhauling. Steps to prevent the flow of funds into India for illegal and terrorist activities like stopping the issue of participatory notes and bringing back the huge stockpile of Indian black money idling in tax havens abroad had not been addressed substantively, given the gravity of the situation. With hostile neighbours across the borders on all sides, a much larger defence outlay was also called for, she said.  

The increased investment in highway development would help ease freight transport nationwide. But the deafening silence in critical issues like interlinking of rivers, that had been hitting media headlines with regularity, indicated the unwillingness of the government to grapple with contentious but essential issues.  

Ms Jayalalithaa summed up by saying the budget mirrored the finance minister's persona. Solid, but unspectacular. Good in intent, low on content.