The steps to tackle inflation in the proposed budget is not sufficient, says Center for Policy Dialogue (CPD).
CPD’s executive director Fahmida Khatun on Thursday made the remarks in an immediate reaction on the budget placed by finance minister AHM Mustafa Kamal.
The government should have increased the tax-free income ceiling considering the existing high inflation, she said.
She, meanwhile, praised government’s proposal to increase subsidy in agriculture sector.
CPD said the subsidies should have been increased in power and energy sectors but the finance minister has indicated that prices of gas and power would be adjusted in future.
That means gas and power prices would go up further, which will increase the economic pressure of lower-income people, she added.
While the allocation on social safety net needed to be increased due to Covid fallout, it was decreased to 2.55 per cent of GDP from last year’s 2.88 per cent, reports Prothom Alo.
Fahmida said reducing corporate tax may be beneficial for the businessmen but this would not have any immediate positive impact in the lives of poor people.
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