Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, the price of sugarcane was fixed at Rs.

46/-per quintal in Uttar Pradesh which was below average. The Government of India increased the prices of sugar by Rs. 140/- per quintal. I would like to bring to the notice of the country and the august House that this action of the Government would enable the mill owners of the mills having capacity of more than 2500 tonnes, to earn maximum profit. The mills achieving the production target of about two lakh quintal would automatically earn profit of about Rs. 250 crores and the mills in the South India would automatically earn profit of about Rs.four crore. But what did the farmers get? In North India, about 11 quintals of sugarcane is required to produce one quintal of sugar. The Government has given the increased profit of about Rs. 140 to the mill owner for 10-11 quintals of sugarcane. But what was given to the farmers? What can be more in justice than this to the farmers? The Government increased the price by Rs. 140 per bag. Thus the consumers will have to pay more price, by the sugarcane farmers is getting nothing. The money is going directly to the pocket of the mills owners. The Government may get it inquired through experts as to how much profit did the sugar mills with the capacity more than 2.,500 tonnes get and how

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[Sh. Ram Nagaina Mishra]

much profit did the mills in South India get. Sugar mills owners will get the Whole profit and the farmers will get nothing, they will be deprived of even the previous price. It is a shear injustice to them.

In the prevailing circumstances, it would be justified that farmers also have 6 share in the profit, if be price of sugar is to the increased to about Rs. 140 per bag.

Sir, I would take just two minutes more. I would like to say a few words on education system. One can see the children of primary classes studying under the shade of tree in th villages every now-a- days. The number of such schools is in thousands. Even floor mats are not available to the chidden in those schools. If the chidden in those schools study under the shade of trees, how can we advocate democracy and talk of bringing g equality in the country? The wealthy people in the rural areas send their children in good schools, but the farmers have to send their children in schools where even sitting arrangements are not proper I would urge upon the Government to provide at least proper buildings and necessary furniture in schools which do not have these things. Secondly, I would lie to submit that the number of universities in on the increase. More and more people have been doing Ph. D and Master's degree but are unemployed and are wandering on roads. There fore, the education policy should be reviewed and changed. Education should be vaertion oriented.

Voactional training should be imparted to the students. If this is not done, lakhs and crores of he youth would not get employment after passing their degree courses and it would become difficult for the Government to maintain law and order situation. In the prevailing circumstances the Government should reduce the number of universities.

They should also adopt some goods thin of the western countries if they can follow the bad ones. Every individual should be imparted education. suiting to one's ability and caliber but there must be some vocational education. What is the present system of education? It is just like the farmer who is keeping a

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cow, and taking a geat care of it with the presumption that the cow would give milk and have a calf, but finds no milk when he goes to milch. All the Members of this House are the people from higher striata, they do not even go to villages. A village farmer curtails his own requirements to equcate his child and expects him to become a gig officer. And if the child some how manges just to pass the degree course, but the will not get any job, so the father has, to approach a political leader to get him a job. All the hon. Members must have been approached in this regard. I would like to ask in what direction the Government is taking the country? Why attention has not been paid to bring about improvement in the education system in the county? Some of the political leaders pointed out that the BJP has brought about improvements in the entire education system? The thing which needs to be seen is that as to what improvements it has made whether they are right or wrong. If a person calls Akbar a great leader, there is nothing wrong it. But at the same time if Maharana Pratap is also called a great leader, that is also correct. There must be some basis to criticize a matter, but the basic fact cannot be declined. Why does the Government not want to face the factual situation.

Today, we need such a system of education which may provide us livelihood, I know that the hon. Minister would not pay attention to it.

I am aware that the time is very short, I have been given short time and Mr. Deputy Speak has advised me to speak has advised me to speak in brief. That is why I have spoken in brief. That is why I have spoken in brief. All figures have been put before you. I would repeat that it the country is to make progress, to things are required to be done-the prices of all those items required for the development of rural areas as also of those commodities which are required by the farmers should be reduced. The country would not make progress if the prices of television of care are reduced. What is the situation in the country today? The hon. Members have also referred to Rinam Kritwa ghritam pibet" This is the saying as per Indian culture, the western culture says 'Rinam

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kritwa sura pribet'.Here the word'ghritwa'has been replaced by the word'Sura'.But the country is being burdened with the debt. I do agree that loan is also required, but at the some time that should be utilized properly. But, how is that money being used,what is the securities scam? I do remember that it was just die to the scanal of Rs. 64 cores that Rajiv Gandhi Government had to go. There after,the Vishwanath Pratap Sigh Government gave big assurances, but could not any thing. All this is true. But now, the matter concerns irrgularities of crores of rupees. It is said that Opposition parties are nto interested in it. Now, the only political objective of the present Government is to remain in power, because they are sure that if elections are held, they will not come in to power again.

Therefore, they do not want to hold elections

In the prevailing situation it is necessary to check corruption.

I would also like the Government to seek experts'opinion with regard to the suggestions. I have given. With regard to the Budget, would like to say that it is presented in the month of March every year.The hon.minister must have realised himself that the officers just try to complete the formalities on paper only in the last moments in a hurry.

In this way neither any concreted work is done nor the money is properly utilized. Keeping this fact in view, why the Government does not set up a new tradition to present the Budget before the House in the month of January, and make allocation to all the departments accordingly, so that the entire work is done smoothly.

With these words, I hope that the Government would consider my suggestions, and make provision to this effect. The most important thing is that we may not be able to wipe out corruption from this country but we can perhaps check it to some extant because as long as the western system is in vogue, we cannot remove corruption completely. If Budget is presented in time and funds are allocated property, then perhaps the money may be utilized to the best. I am not criticizing Government. I do know that they would mange to get the Budget passed. But at the

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same time I would like the Government to take my suggestions into consideration and also pay attention to the condition of the sugarcane growers and to the prevailing situation in rural areas. This is my suggestion.

[English]

SHRI B. AKBAR PASHA (Vellore): Hon. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I am standing before you to support this Financial Bill. The Budget pro- posed by Dr. Manmohan Singh is a balanced Budget, a land-mark Budget, a populist Budget and a path-breaking Budget. It is also a nation- savioer Budget. I have very high appreciation for Dr. Manmohan Singh for the type of Budget he has produced in this financial year. The Opposition leadrs and critics of the Government were hall bent to bombard the Government on the Budget issue. But the Finance Minister, with his pragmatic and realistic proposals, provided tremendous relief and solace to the common man. The prices of all the commodities like refrigerators, air-conditioners, air coolers, Vanaspati, cosmetics, tea, coffee, fast food, motorcars have come down. Normally before a Budget the shop-keepers, traders and merchants used to hoard articles expecting there is going to be a rise in the prices. But his year, I hope that they would have burnt their fingers because the prices of commodities have started coming down soon after the Budget.

The Opposition has been constantly branding Dr. Manmohan Singh as an agent of International Monetary Fund, World Bank and other financial institutions. People believed that Dr. Manmohan Singh was least concerned about the welfare of the common man and the country as such. There was a time when he was considered as a liability to the Congress and the Government.

Do, the same Dr. Manmohan Singh has amply proved that he is a big asset to the country. The credibility of the Party and the country has reached very big height. I was watching a TV interview and Dr.

Manmohan Singh was telling

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[Sh. B. Akabar Pasha]

that he did not have a magic and to produce result overnight. But I believe he is a magician and a juggler. How come that he has been able to produce such a balanced Budget which is able to help not only the poor, not only the middle class but,also the rich. The jugglery and the clever manovering of the Finance Ministry has puzzled the people ho are still wondering from where the money has come to swell the revenue. People here from the Opposition have been talking because they have to talk. But all over there had been appreciation from all quarters. When we read tghe news papers there has been appreciation of the Budget. Even after giving so many concession, reduction in the customs duty, abolishing excise on a number of consumable items etc., the deficit has come down, despite incredible hike in Central Plan outlay by 32 percent resulting in the revenue loss of Rs. 4522 crores. Still he managed to pag the deficit to Rs.

4314 crores which is less than 5 percent of GDP.

The bold steps taken like devaluation of the currency, liberalisation of trade policy, opening of the country to foreign investments have resulted in shooting up of foreign exchange within a short time. Otherwise we would have been in a fools' paradise just as in Russia when they used to feel that their money was officially having certain value but in real term it was thousand times less than what they were feeling.

The total convertibility is a very bold step. Surprisingly the rupee has become firmer to the disappointment of exporters since they expected that the value of dollar would go up to Rs. 35 or Rs. 40.

But it was Rs. 33 and it has come down to Rs. 31.50. They expected that they would reap the advantage of full convertibility. But.we are proud that our currency is firm.

The rates of interest have been reduced by one percent but sill, a my previous speaker was saying, it was high. By and large, it will also be getting redcued.

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The exports have been encouraged to increase the production and are earning foreign exchange for our country. Within a year and a half, the inflation rate has slipped down from 17 percent to 61/2 percent. There is no denying it. People in the Opposition have been saying that it is not 61/2 percent. It is 9 percent. But anyway, they admit the fact that it has come down.

The prices of a number of items started coming down and the benefit is percolating to the common man ultimately. It was a wizard who reduced the indirect taxes which has benefited the common man.

The Budget proposals, as always, can be divided into direct and indirect taxes. This pattern of direct taxes include raising standard deduction from existing Rs. 12000/-to Rs. 15,000/-and Rs. 15,00/ to Rs. 18,000,/-for workmen with an income of Rs.75, 000/-. The basic Gfit tax has been raised from Rs. 20, 000/- to Rs. 30,000/-.The wealth-tax expemption in respect of one house or part of a house to an individual or a Hindu undivided family has been provided. The new power sector undertaking will benefit in th form of tax holiday for the first five years. Also he has been considerate to provide this concession of five years tax holiday after the production started in some of the very backward States like Jammu& Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Sikkim, Goa and the Union Territories of Andaman & Nicobar Islands, Dadar & Nagar Haveli, Daman and Diu and Lakshadweep and Pondicherry.

These are all very thought provoking so that these backward States can come up.

The Finance Minister has, in some cases, completely eliminated excise duties on items like coffee, tea and instant tea. Similarly excise duty has been reduced in several items like electric fans,,foam rubber, motor cars, TV, personal computers, typewriters and fax: ma- chines. These have become common nowadays and these are the necessities of today's living. They can not say this is only a luxury item. This has become a necessity to day.

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The charge has been level led against the Finance Minister that he has done nothing to increase the minimum expemption limit of IT and left it at Rs. 28, 000/-. As. my previous speaker has rightly pointed out, he was right in having done it. Otherwise, how to go for rev- enue?

After last year's Budget, I spoke in the Parliament and has made a request to the Finance Minister to remove 10 percent duty on the export of finished leather and 10 per cent of duty on export of rough granite.These are the two items which mainly are concentrated in Southern part of the country from where I come from.

I led a delegation of tanners consisting of people from Madras, Bombay, Kanpur, and Calcutta. He was kind enough to reduce the export duty on finished leather to five percent. He was also kind enough to reduce the export duty on rough granite by 3percent.

Sir, it happens that I am the president of the Tanners Association in Madras. I am also leather technologist with post- graduate degree got from the Central Leather Research Institute, Madras. I also happen to own a tannery factory and shoes factory. I only export shoes and not leather, But I know the difficulties the tanners are facing today. Ours is a tropical country and the quality of leather, the raw-material that is available in the country is very thin because of the climatic conditions and it is having a lot of defects. They are not in a position to convert the whole thing in to articles and export as such. But, any way, export

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of the article is going up. From 22 percent, it has reached 78 per cant. In the year 1990-91, the export was only to the extent of 22 percent. The total export of leather and leather goods was to the tune of Rs. 4000 crores. Actually leather export is coming down. In this year's Budget, when the Finance Minister was kind enough to remove the 7 per cent duty on export of rough granite, he has not considered it fit to remove the 5 percent duty on finished leather.

This is giving. the tanners a lot of problems. They have been expressing their difficulties to me. All the leather cannot be converted because mostly we have the lining leather and very little of upper leather. We have to import a good quantify of good qualitty upper leather in order to make articles and export some of the bad quality abroad.

So, I request the Finance Minister to consider this if actor and give a relief to the tanners just as he has done in the case of rough grant so that the industry can thrive.

With these words,I thank you very much for having given me this opportunity to speak.

MR.DEPUTY-SPEAKER; Thank you very much. The House stands adjourned to meet again tomorrow, Thursday, 22nd April, 1993 at 11.00 A.M.

1957hrs

The Lok Sabha then adjourned fill Eleven of the Clock on Thursday, April 19931 Vaisakha 2,1915 (Saka)