Union Budget 2014-15: India

Amid high expectations from the middle class and and industry, Indian finance minister Arun Jaitley presented his maiden Budget last week.
Cleaning Ganga, linking of rivers and beautification of river banks were on top of the agenda of Finance Minister Arun Jaitley who set aside Rs.2,037 crore for an

integrated Ganga development project in the union budget 2014-2015.He announced that a NRI fund for conservation of river Ganga will be set up.
"To harness their (NRI) enthusiasm to contribute toward the conservation of river Ganga, an NRI fund for Ganga will be set up which will finance special projects,"

Jaitley said.
Village roads and the national employment guarantee scheme also found prime importance in the budgetary allocation for India's rural development ministry for which the

allocation was hiked by 35 percent.
Government also allocated Rs.700 crore to Delhi for improving its water and power supply. Of the total sum, Rs.500 crore was earmarked for the water sector.
The Aam Aadmi Party and the Congress were quick to dismiss the allocation as "lacking clarity" and "directionless".
The NDA government also intends to cover every house under total sanitation by 2019 under the Swatchh Bharat Abhiyan (Clean India Mission), Finance Minister Arun

Jaitley said during announcement of budget and sought support of people to achieve the target.
The budget also hiked the outlay for the ministry of drinking water and sanitation by 27 percent over the revised estimates for 2013-14.

Here is a quick look at what goes up and what goes down:

****What goes up****

*Cigarettes
*Cigars
*Tobacco products
*Gutkha and pan masala
*Jarda scented tobacco
*Aerated drinks containing added sugar
*Some telecom products
*Radio Taxi
*Imported electronic products
*Portable X-ray machines
*Half cut/broken diamonds

****What goes down****

*Mobile phones
*Imported computers components
*Smart cards
*Footwear
*Colour picture tubes
*Small LCD TV
*Precious & semi-precious colour stones
*Diamond
*Readymade garments
*Flat copper wires
*Soaps
*Oil
*Sports Gloves
*Branded petrol
*Matchbox
*Life micro insurance policies
*HIV/AIDS drugs and diagnostic kits
*DDT insecticides
*RO based water purifiers
*LED Lights, fixtures and lamps
*E-book readers
*Machinery and equipment of solar energy powers
*Machinery and equipment of food processing and packaging
*Machinery and equipment of compressed biogas plants