Finance and Planning Adviser Dr Mirza Azizul Islam made the budget proposal Thursday.

The business leaders praised the budgetary measures that allocated the highest for education and information technology with emphasis on agriculture, energy and power, health, capital market development and reduced import duties on some essentials such as rice, wheat, onion, lentils, peas, grams, and crude edible oil.

They also welcomed the proposals to set the exemption limit of income tax for individuals, abolish the deduction in tax at source on credit card bill and to continue the duty-free benefit for essential commodities and lifesaving drugs, and the enhanced allocation for SME Foundation.

The business leaders, however, stressed good governance and strong monitoring system to implement the goals of the budget.

The proposed enhancement of customs and supplementary duty on raw and intermediate material and withdrawal of zero duty facility on import of textile machinery and computer and computer accessories have come under fire.

Ficci
Foreign Investors' Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Ficci) appreciated the measures, especially for the social, education, communication and health sectors, proposed in line with the pronounced Millenium Development Goals (MDGs).

Terming the proposed budget of Tk 871.4 billion, which is 30.38 percent higher than that of last fiscal, as ambitious, the chamber said, "We feel that it will require further improvement in governance and strong monitoring to achieve the goals."

The Ficci said abolition of tax treatment for investment in properties like house, land and motor vehicle, abolition of the deduction in tax at source on credit card bill, enhancement of tax-exempted income limit, introduction of 'universal self-assessment procedures', withdrawal of customs duty on crude edible oil and lentils, continuation of duty-free benefit for essential commodities and lifesaving drugs, elimination of existing complexities of VAT laws relating to contract manufacturing, reduction in penal provision and simplification of VAT challan are commendable.

However, the chamber expressed its discontent with huge increase in non-development expenditure and widening of budget deficit, huge dependence on bank borrowings as well as foreign aid to meet the deficit, enhancement of customs and supplementary duty mostly upon raw and intermediate material, withdrawal of zero duty facility on import of textile machinery and computer and computer accessories, and segregation of mobile phone sector and raising of tax rate at higher level.

CCCI
Chittagong Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CCCI) termed the proposed budged as good and congenial for flourishing the agro-based industry and for social development.

CCCI President Saifuzzaman Chowdhury thanked the government for complete withdrawal of import duty on edible oil and lentils and continuation of 'zero duty' for rice, wheat, onion, peas, and gram in the proposed budget.

He, however, expressed resentment over absence of additional allocation for Chittagong division under Annual Development Programme (ADP) in the budget.

He called for making equitable allocation for all the areas for the best utilisation of the resources and potentials the different regions have.

The Chittagong chamber chief believed that the proposed export subsidy amounting to Tk 1,100 crore would boost the export sector.

Finding the allocations made for power, IT, agriculture, primary education, food and environment development sectors as right, Chowdhury thought that an enhanced amount should have been proposed to be earmarked for farming and information technology sectors.

He lauded the proposal for providing Tk 150 crore as loan for flourishing the agro-based industries through specialised banks.

He also hailed the budget for putting utmost importance on reducing the self-empowerment of the tax officials, easing the process of paying taxes and making the tax administration transparent and accountable.

He urged the government to reconsider the proposal for realising income tax of Tk 1000 in advance during issuance or renewal of trade licenses from city corporations.

The CCCI president criticised the re-introduction of Pre-shipment Inspection (PSI) system for import of cement clinker and feared that it would raise the price of cement to leave a bad impact on the construction industry.

BGMEA
President of Bangladesh Garments Manufacturers and Exporter Association (BGMEA) Anwar-Ul-Alam Chowdhury welcomed the new budget for taking the Chittagong and Mongla ports into special consideration.

"Like previous year, the government has allocated Tk 20 crore for increasing labour skills of Chittagong Sea Port. I wish this time the authorities will be able to spend this budgetary allocation," he told The Daily Star over telephone.

He appreciated the government decision to handle the New Mooring Container Terminal through private management hoping that this would further increase the port's efficiency.

Reshuffling the duty structure also appears to be a positive decision, he added.

The BGMEA chief sees the power sector allocation as very thin to cater to the present need.

"The government has decided to install 345 mega watt (MW) power plant in the next one year, but this should have been of at least 1,000 MW to ease the chronic power shortage of the country," he said.

He was also critical of not having any allocation for 570 sick industries in the proposed budget.

BCI
Bangladesh Chamber of Industries (BCI) also praised the exemption limit of income tax for an individual to Tk 1.5 lakh.

It said the proposal for raising advance taxes from doctors fees at hospital and diagnostic centres to 10 percent and continuation of zero-duty benefit for essentials is commendable.

The chamber is also happy with enhancement of customs duty from 12 percent to 25 percent on imports of formalin and stearic acid to prevent public health hazards.

However it sees imposition of import duty on textile machinery as a negative step.

The BCI said such an import duty would not only reduce competitiveness of local textile mills but also affect the RMG sector, as prices of yarn and fabrics would be raised by it.

DSE
Welcoming the proposed budget, Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) said the proposals regarding the country's capital market development are very encouraging.

It said the proposal for offloading shares of a number of government companies in telecommunication, power and energy sector and offering tax incentives to the private sector telecommunication companies to offload their shares will strengthen the capital market.

"We understood from the budget speech that Mongla Port will become a vibrant port again. May we in this regard request the government to consider the proposal of making Mongla Port and Chittagong Port into public limited companies and raise a part of their funds to reconstruct/develop these ports through capital market to ensure public participation for greater degree of transparency and accountability. We would also request the same for Biman," the DSE said.

BJSA
Hailing the proposed budget, Bangladesh Jute Spinners Association (BJSA) suggested that the government should bring administrative transparency for getting the result of the budget.

It may be difficult for the government to achieve the targets set in the budget without proper monitoring and infrastructural development, the association said.

The BJSA, however, lamented that the proposed budget did not make any direction about the development of jute and jute industry.

The association sought reforms in the jute industry.