Union Budget 2022: Nothing for us, says middle class

The government should have offered some relief from skyrocketing prices of basic food items increased the tax slab for the middleclass segment in the Budgetrdquo said the Yadav family from Navi Mumbai The members of the family said that education has become expensive and it would have been great to get some reprieveIn our quest to understand the perspective of the middleclass on the Budget midday visited an interesting or rather unique family of Ram Naresh Yadav 72 a retired professional and his wife Devraji Yadav 71 a homemaker in Navi MumbaiWhat sets the family apart is the fact that in the era where nuclear families have become an accepted norm the Yadavs spread across three generations live under one roof This made the family an apt choice to get a comprehensive viewpoint on their expectations and apprehensions from the BudgetThe family of couple Ram Naresh Yadav 72 and Devraji Yadav 71 at their home in Kamothe Navi Mumbai PicSayyed Sameer AbediPravin Yadav 39 HR professional said ldquoDue to the pandemic and rising inflation the cost of living has risen dramatically I was expecting a hike in 80C limit but unfortunately the government failed to deliverrdquoldquoWhile I appreciate the focus on infra jobs and connectivity we need to build medical and education system right from root The pandemic was an eye opener and I was expecting a great amount of investment in these sectorrdquo said Anita Yadav 35 a homemakerA daughterinlaw of the family Manju Yadav 45 a homemaker said ldquoWe have a common kitchen that feeds the entire family and even a slight fluctuation in the cost of vegetables or other essential items affects us big timerdquoAnother daughterinlaw said she is ldquomore concerned about basic expenses that are involved in running the kitchen I was expecting some more reliefrdquoMost of the youngsters in the family were a happy lot but a few expressed concern about inflation and high education costsA secondyear BCom student Muskaan Yadav 18 believed the government should have addressed the issue of rising prices ldquoEven at this age I can see how difficult it is to maintain a proper household budget failing which could lead to financial problems Prices of basic essential items like tea edible oil pulses meat and even cooking gas have been continuously skyrocketingrdquoRupesh Yadav 21 who is pursuing MBA said ldquoBasic education in private schools is beyond the reach of the common man The situation gets worse when higher studies like MBA engineering and medical come into play I was expecting the Budget to ease this burden by offering more pocketfriendly education loansrdquoldquoBut I admire the proposals of digital university skill programmes and starting 188 new educational TV channels with the promise of imparting world class education to rural India in the language of their choicerdquo he addedKhushi Yadav 16 a school student ldquoI am currently studying commerce and want to go abroad for further studies I feel happy that the government is planning to issue epassports so there is no risk of misplacing itrdquoDeepali Yadav 19 a college student said ldquoAs a youngster I welcome the governmentrsquos initiative to reduce the prices of electronic goods especially if it happens for tablets and mobile phones that are no longer just a source of entertainment but a medium of education But even the poor students should be able to afford itrdquoRam Awad Yadav 47 a working professional said ldquoThe Budget should have emphasised on the basic needs of the citizens Yes the roadmap for the next 25 years is impressive and if implemented in the right sense it shall see our country progress like never beforerdquoRahul Yadav 25 an HR executive said ldquoThe finance minister has projected that 60 lakh new jobs would be created but given the size of our population I am not sure if this would be adequate to eradicate unemploymentrdquolsquoSalaried class had major expectationsrsquoPramod Yadav 44 a banker said ldquoThe salaried class had major expectations to get some relief in taxation There was a lot of hype that the standard deduction will be increased from R50000 to R1 lakh and the interest on home loan was to be increased from Rs 2 lakh to Rs 3 lakh but nothing happened This was a big disappointment for all However I am still happy that the government will continue with both the options of old and new tax regimes for nowrdquoDevendra Yadav 26 who is pursuing MBA said ldquoI feel there is a lot of scope for improving the healthcare sector We have to learn from the past that pandemics have a direct negative impact on the economy We all were taken by surprise when the first COVID19 wave hit us Investing in research and development and attracting direct investments in the healthcare sector will go a long way in prevention and also ensure that we are much better equipped to handle any future pandemicsrdquoAnupama Yadav 31 a banker said ldquoMore steps should have been taken by the government to increase the tax slabs which would have been beneficial for the middle class segment In the current scenario where major expenses are being made for infra projects some policy or subsidy should have been announced to reduce inflation Being a mother of a fiveyearold I know firsthand how expensive the education has become but see no relief for the parents in the BudgetrdquoRam Naresh the head of the family said ldquoTo me apart from basic survival education is of prime importance I am happy that the government proposes to invite foreign universities to our country and also has plans to initiate a digital universityrdquo ldquoBeing a farmer at heart I also welcome the proposed steps to improve agri education and further promote organic farmingrdquo