Dangling a pre-poll carrot for the middle class, Finance Minister Piyush Goyal says the government proposes to raise the income tax exemption limit to Rs 5 lakh, but left the implementation to the next government in the full-fledged budget.
It has also proposed to raise the standard deduction to Rs 50,000. Among the major sops, Piyush Goyal has announced Rs 6,000 per annum direct cash transfer to farmers owning less than 2 hectares of land.
The move, months before general elections, is likely to benefit 12 crore farmers. Rs 60,000 crore has also been set aside for MGNREGA, the rural employment scheme, with Piyush Goyal adding that the allocation can be increased further.
The Finance Minister says a national cow commission for the welfare of cows would also be set up. The gratuity limit has also been increased to Rs 30 lakh.