Don't burden just the salaried class

Many have claimed the budget is anti-aam aadmi or common man, as it is once again the common man and the working professional that will have to bear the brunt of a slew of taxes, many of these indirect taxes that are not income or wealth tax.

While many claimed to be disappointed with the Budget, we admit upfront that one cannot please everybody. What this Budget though proved is that the professional working class salaries are now being stretched to breaking limits thanks to the heavy tax burden on this section of people. What these increased taxes continue to do is effectively nullify the hike in salaries this section earns.

For years now, this class has continued to struggle as savings have continued to shrink. Higher cost of food and entertainment has eaten away into the already stretched-to-capacity wallets and the cost of living has now certainly outpaced all those salary hikes, with water hikes and electricity hikes, all adding to monthly maintenance bills for this already beleaguered set.

This class has spoken out about how it has been forced to cut out the little frills -- a movie with the family, a dining out experience, even a celebration because rising costs are eating into their savings. They are being pushed to the brink in many ways, used as punching bag for a Government who is looking to increase revenue through taxes.

With just a small percentage of people paying taxes (under 10 per cent) it is unfair to keep targeting the urban middle and lower class with the tax burden. What the government needs to do is to increase its base of taxpayers to bring more cash into the kitty instead of looking at the same demographic year after year for taxes. More people paying taxes means more money, not the same number of people already milked dry with the heavy taxation.