‘Election’ budget from President with goodies for all
View(s):President Mahinda Rajapaksa’s 2015 budget surprised many across the country, offering a load of ‘goodies’ which included last minute adjustments that even surprised some senior Finance Ministry officials.
A passer-by watches the budget presentation outside a Colombo store on Friday. Pic by Mangala Weerasekera
“This smacks of an election budget. How are they going to offer all these concessions and incentives with revenues low and high deficits,” asked a senior economist, who declined to be named, said.
In the budget presented on Friday, the President said Sri Lanka is expected to raise US$ 2 billion in foreign investment this year; apparel export earnings would reach $5 billion and export earnings, by 2020, are expected to reach over $20 billion. The student intake to local universities will increase to 100,000 per year by 2020 (from around 20-25,000 per year now).
The president announced increased taxes on some vehicles, cigarette and liquor, imposed a US100 entrance fee at casinos but reduced water rates and said the property of tax evaders would be seized.
He said all EPF members will get special benefits, offered free seed paddy to farmers, tackled salary anomalies of railway workers, introduced a pension scheme for migrant and garment sector workers and trishaw drivers; reduced local milk powder prices by Rs 100 per kilo, provided a monthly payment of Rs 3,000 to kidney patients.
He also said 50,000 new teaching assistants would be appointed. Offering concessions to a growing number of elders, he said their monthly payment will increase in addition to increasing interest rates to 12 per cent for deposits by elders.