NEW DELHI // The outgoing government on Monday defended its much-criticised economic and fiscal policies while presenting its final budget ahead of a general election it is widely expected to lose.
The finance minister, P Chidambaram, insisted the government’s record on growth was “unparalleled” over its two five-year terms. “Our way of governance has not come in the way of lifting 140 million people out of poverty in the last 10 years,” he said in his budget speech yesterday.
As is traditional before an election, Mr Chidambaram presented only an interim budget, outlining expenditure for the next few months and refraining from radical alterations to tax structures.
His speech was delivered amid a persistent din as legislators opposed to the proposed division of the southern state of Andhra Pradesh disrupted proceedings with shouted slogans.
The chaos was symbolic of how beleaguered Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s Congress-led coalition government has been, facing attacks over alleged corruption, high inflation and slowing economic growth.
In the fiscal year ending March 31, 2013, economic growth slowed to a decade low of 4.5 per cent. Last November, the rating agency Standard & Poor’s warned India that its sovereign rating might be lowered from “negative” to “speculative” if its “policy drift” continued.
Mr Chidambaram on Monday rebutted the suggestion of “policy drift”, arguing that India had only been a victim of a downturn in the global economic cycle.
Much of his budget was devoted to prudence, focused on reducing the fiscal deficit – the difference between expenditure and revenue.
India’s fiscal deficit had ballooned to 6.46 per cent of the gross domestic product in the 2011-12 financial year, compared with 3.88 per cent in 2004-2005, when the Congress began its 10-year tenure.
Mr Chidambaram, who took over the finance ministry in July 2012, noted in his speech that he will have managed to reduce the fiscal deficit to 4.6 per cent of GDP by March, and that his budget would help shrink it further to 4.1 per cent next year.
Nearly 800 billion rupees (Dh47.5bn) worth of planned spending has been cut from the budget.
As a result of this fiscal caution, the budget lacked extravagant populist measures aimed at winning votes. This was had been a distinct worry for investors; in December, the ratings agency Fitch noted that “a steeper political struggle to pull in more votes” might result in a spending spree.
But Mr Chidambaram did announce a greater outlay of funds for India’s military, hiking the defence budget by 10 per cent to 2.24 trillion rupees. India is already the world’s largest importer of arms.
His budget also paved the way for cheaper cars, motorcycles, mobile phones and televisions by reducing the excise tariffs on these goods.
“The budget had no big surprises, but since this was an interim budget, there could really be no big surprises,” said John Raja, co-founder of How India Lives, a Delhi-based firm that analyses public data.
Mr Raja said part of Mr Chidambaram’s success in reining in spending was achieved by “jugglery”.
“Some of the payments that they have to make by way of subsidies – in the fuel subsidy, for example – they’ve merely put off till next year, so that it doesn’t show up in this year’s accounting,” he pointed out.
“The way Indian democracy works, every rupee that is spent by the government has to be voted upon,” Mr Raja told The National. “Now, nothing bars the government from including big investments and schemes in interim budgets. But traditionally, only short-term tweaks are announced.”
In keeping with the muted expectations for the budget, the stock markets reacted only tepidly to Mr Chidambaram’s speech. The Bombay Stock Exchange closed 97 points higher from the previous day, rising to 20,464.06, while the National Stock Exchange rose 24.95 points to 6,073.30.
ssubramanian@thenational.ae
COMPANY%20PROFILE%20
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If%20you%20go
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Founders: Ines Mena, Claudia Ribas, Simona Agolini, Nourhan Hassan and Therese Hundt
Date started: January 2017, app launched November 2017
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Private/Retail/Leisure
Number of Employees: 18 employees, including full-time and flexible workers
Funding stage and size: Seed round completed Q4 2019 - $1m raised
Funders: Oman Technology Fund, 500 Startups, Vision Ventures, Seedstars, Mindshift Capital, Delta Partners Ventures, with support from the OQAL Angel Investor Network and UAE Business Angels
How to come clean about financial infidelity
- Be honest and transparent: It is always better to own up than be found out. Tell your partner everything they want to know. Show remorse. Inform them of the extent of the situation so they know what they are dealing with.
- Work on yourself: Be honest with yourself and your partner and figure out why you did it. Don’t be ashamed to ask for professional help.
- Give it time: Like any breach of trust, it requires time to rebuild. So be consistent, communicate often and be patient with your partner and yourself.
- Discuss your financial situation regularly: Ensure your spouse is involved in financial matters and decisions. Your ability to consistently follow through with what you say you are going to do when it comes to money can make all the difference in your partner’s willingness to trust you again.
- Work on a plan to resolve the problem together: If there is a lot of debt, for example, create a budget and financial plan together and ensure your partner is fully informed, involved and supported.
Carol Glynn, founder of Conscious Finance Coaching
Company Profile
Name: Thndr
Started: 2019
Co-founders: Ahmad Hammouda and Seif Amr
Sector: FinTech
Headquarters: Egypt
UAE base: Hub71, Abu Dhabi
Current number of staff: More than 150
Funds raised: $22 million
Match info:
Leicester City 1
Ghezzal (63')
Liverpool 2
Mane (10'), Firmino (45')
Confirmed%20bouts%20(more%20to%20be%20added)
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Tightening the screw on rogue recruiters
The UAE overhauled the procedure to recruit housemaids and domestic workers with a law in 2017 to protect low-income labour from being exploited.
Only recruitment companies authorised by the government are permitted as part of Tadbeer, a network of labour ministry-regulated centres.
A contract must be drawn up for domestic workers, the wages and job offer clearly stating the nature of work.
The contract stating the wages, work entailed and accommodation must be sent to the employee in their home country before they depart for the UAE.
The contract will be signed by the employer and employee when the domestic worker arrives in the UAE.
Only recruitment agencies registered with the ministry can undertake recruitment and employment applications for domestic workers.
Penalties for illegal recruitment in the UAE include fines of up to Dh100,000 and imprisonment
But agents not authorised by the government sidestep the law by illegally getting women into the country on visit visas.
Company%20profile
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Types of policy
Term life insurance: this is the cheapest and most-popular form of life cover. You pay a regular monthly premium for a pre-agreed period, typically anything between five and 25 years, or possibly longer. If you die within that time, the policy will pay a cash lump sum, which is typically tax-free even outside the UAE. If you die after the policy ends, you do not get anything in return. There is no cash-in value at any time. Once you stop paying premiums, cover stops.
Whole-of-life insurance: as its name suggests, this type of life cover is designed to run for the rest of your life. You pay regular monthly premiums and in return, get a guaranteed cash lump sum whenever you die. As a result, premiums are typically much higher than one term life insurance, although they do not usually increase with age. In some cases, you have to keep up premiums for as long as you live, although there may be a cut-off period, say, at age 80 but it can go as high as 95. There are penalties if you don’t last the course and you may get a lot less than you paid in.
Critical illness cover: this pays a cash lump sum if you suffer from a serious illness such as cancer, heart disease or stroke. Some policies cover as many as 50 different illnesses, although cancer triggers by far the most claims. The payout is designed to cover major financial responsibilities such as a mortgage or children’s education fees if you fall ill and are unable to work. It is cost effective to combine it with life insurance, with the policy paying out once if you either die or suffer a serious illness.
Income protection: this pays a replacement income if you fall ill and are unable to continue working. On the best policies, this will continue either until you recover, or reach retirement age. Unlike critical illness cover, policies will typically pay out for stress and musculoskeletal problems such as back trouble.
AIDA%20RETURNS
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Dirham Stretcher tips for having a baby in the UAE
Selma Abdelhamid, the group's moderator, offers her guide to guide the cost of having a young family:
• Buy second hand stuff
They grow so fast. Don't get a second hand car seat though, unless you 100 per cent know it's not expired and hasn't been in an accident.
• Get a health card and vaccinate your child for free at government health centres
Ms Ma says she discovered this after spending thousands on vaccinations at private clinics.
• Join mum and baby coffee mornings provided by clinics, babysitting companies or nurseries.
Before joining baby classes ask for a free trial session. This way you will know if it's for you or not. You'll be surprised how great some classes are and how bad others are.
• Once baby is ready for solids, cook at home
Take the food with you in reusable pouches or jars. You'll save a fortune and you'll know exactly what you're feeding your child.
Company%20Profile
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Company%20Profile
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How to protect yourself when air quality drops
Install an air filter in your home.
Close your windows and turn on the AC.
Shower or bath after being outside.
Wear a face mask.
Stay indoors when conditions are particularly poor.
If driving, turn your engine off when stationary.
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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Blackpink World Tour [Born Pink] In Cinemas
Starring: Rose, Jisoo, Jennie, Lisa
Directors: Min Geun, Oh Yoon-Dong
Rating: 3/5
The alternatives
• Founded in 2014, Telr is a payment aggregator and gateway with an office in Silicon Oasis. It’s e-commerce entry plan costs Dh349 monthly (plus VAT). QR codes direct customers to an online payment page and merchants can generate payments through messaging apps.
• Business Bay’s Pallapay claims 40,000-plus active merchants who can invoice customers and receive payment by card. Fees range from 1.99 per cent plus Dh1 per transaction depending on payment method and location, such as online or via UAE mobile.
• Tap started in May 2013 in Kuwait, allowing Middle East businesses to bill, accept, receive and make payments online “easier, faster and smoother” via goSell and goCollect. It supports more than 10,000 merchants. Monthly fees range from US$65-100, plus card charges of 2.75-3.75 per cent and Dh1.2 per sale.
• 2checkout’s “all-in-one payment gateway and merchant account” accepts payments in 200-plus markets for 2.4-3.9 per cent, plus a Dh1.2-Dh1.8 currency conversion charge. The US provider processes online shop and mobile transactions and has 17,000-plus active digital commerce users.
• PayPal is probably the best-known online goods payment method - usually used for eBay purchases - but can be used to receive funds, providing everyone’s signed up. Costs from 2.9 per cent plus Dh1.2 per transaction.
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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Electric scooters: some rules to remember
- Riders must be 14-years-old or over
- Wear a protective helmet
- Park the electric scooter in designated parking lots (if any)
- Do not leave electric scooter in locations that obstruct traffic or pedestrians
- Solo riders only, no passengers allowed
- Do not drive outside designated lanes
Dhadak
Director: Shashank Khaitan
Starring: Janhvi Kapoor, Ishaan Khattar, Ashutosh Rana
Stars: 3
Greatest of All Time
Starring: Vijay, Sneha, Prashanth, Prabhu Deva, Mohan
Company%20profile
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The Internet
Hive Mind
four stars
The%20specs
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