August 7, 2024
Kalyan Banerjee s speech during the consideration and passing of The Finance (No. 2) Bill, 2024
Thank you, Sir, for giving me the opportunity. Sir, this Finance Bill is not merely a plain bunch of papers but a legal monetary explanation for the livelihood of people of this country. It is a part of the Union Budget. In contains important changes of the Central Government, reflecting India’s finance and financial regulation of the money market of the organised sector. Sir, this Bill does not speak about unorganised sector. What is the financial allocation for this unorganised sector? This sector accounts for around 92 per cent of India’s workforce and it has a far-reaching effect. This Bill does not deal with this sector at all. The current unemployment rate is 9.2 per cent. It has always been saying that this scheme or that scheme would be introduced to solve the unemployment problem. As you know, the concept of employment should be something different where the relationship between an employee and an employer should be fixed and security for labourers, employees and workers should be there. This Bill does not deal with such aspects of the matter effectively. This Bill really does not deal with the unemployment crisis of this country. Some data are there. But who are getting employment in Government sector or in private sector? There is another problem. Now, contractors are engaged and workers are appointed through the contractors. Once the contract is terminated, the workers are also terminated. Then, where is the security of workers? We have to address this issue. The nation is required to address the issue of unemployment fully and a permanent solution is required. Let us take an example. Where is the security of employment of ASHA workers and other workers? Once the schemes are abolished, they are terminated. As you know, there are appointments of some employees under any project on a contractual basis. If that project has gone, the future of those workers has also gone. That will not address the problem. A permanent solution is required to solve this unemployment problem. The average literacy rate is 76.32 per cent. Around 30 per cent of the patients still suffer from infectious diseases like tuberculosis, malaria, and diarrhea. The rate of infant mortality is 26.619 deaths per 1,000 live births. Around 40 per cent of the patients suffer from chronic diseases like diabetes, hypertension, etc. There is a shortage of 1.5 million doctors in the country and one million auxiliary nurses and midwives. The total employment in manufacturing sector has come down to 11.5 per cent. Sir, the availability of doctors in hospitals is a great problem. I have been elected as a public representative since 2009. Since 2009, I have been contributing to six municipality hospitals through my MDLADS fund. They also run the municipal health centres. All modern facilities like ICU, machineries, are there. The problem is that I am not getting one cardiologist for these hospitals. The doctors are very much interested to work in a city but no one is ready to go and serve in the mofussil areas or the rural areas. Therefore, our medical education policy also requires to be looked into. It should be revisited. Some mandatory provisions should be made through legislation that every doctor should have to go to the rural places or mofussil areas. Our country, either the State Government or the Central Government, is spending money for them. We, MPs and MLAs, are also giving money. As far as their medical education is concerned, either the Central Government or the State Government is contributing in their studies. After 10 years, they leave their Government service and start doing their private practice. They do not go anywhere. This is a very serious problem which we are facing everywhere. This has to be addressed properly. India is one of the growing economies. There is no doubt about it. But the benefits of its development are yet to reach fully to the poor people of this country. There are 92.4 per cent informal workers with no written contract, paid leave, and other benefits. Around 58 per cent of the workforce are selfemployed. It is not entrepreneurship rather it is a distressed employment in the country. If our GDP growth is 7.6 per cent then, why was the consumption rate restricted below 3 per cent during the last year? The Household Consumption Expenditure Survey reported that the monthly consumption of a family in the rural areas is Rs. 3,094 per month while the overall average was Rs. 4,963 per month. I support one thing said by the hon. Finance Minister. I know that highly educated persons may disagree with me. I do not mind that. It is because I am coming from a mofussil area. I studied in a paathshala. I studied in a mofussil school or in a mofussil college. I studied in a law college. It is not correct that the persons who are coming from the Oxford University or the Cambridge University will govern the country. They are the best materials. I can see that if one studies in Presidency College, St. Xaviers College, Jawaharlal Nehru University, they suffer from superiority complex as they do not consider the students from the rural areas or the students from the cities as the top students. They think that only they would govern the country. No, it is not acceptable. ब्रिब्रिशर्स तो चलेगए, लेब्रिन हमारी माथा झिुाने िी आदत नहीं गई। Therefore, I do not agree with this. I agree with the hon. Finance Minister. We must consider first the students coming from the rural areas, who are studying in colleges. They are not less intelligent than the other students. They must be speaking very good English but their approach to disrespect the students from India, the students who have read in villages, mofussil and other colleges, is not correct. रूडी जी, आपिो नहीं बोला है। I am disagreeing with someone. Sir, I am sorry. Now, this is my point. All the students have to be kept at the same footing. Sir, I have taken only four to five minutes. र्र, आप थोड़ा बोलनेदीब्रजए। मैंनेअभी शरूु ब्रिया है। Sir, we are opposing the imposition of 18 per cent GST on LIC and health insurance. Now, the core question comes. It is always said that the Centre is giving this much amount to the States. But how much is the Centre collecting from the States on account of Income Tax, Direct Taxes, GST, Indirect Taxes, etc., I will give a few statistics. I will not use the expression ‘figures’. Mr. Mahtab is present here; he knows why I will not use that expression. Now, there is a direct tax collection in crores. There is a contribution of 3.92 per cent so far as West Bengal is concerned. It was 3.87 per cent in 2019-20; 4.26 per cent in 2020- 21; 3.81 per cent in 2021-22; 3.46 per cent in 2022-23. I am making it short. I will mention the top 10 States from where the taxes are collected. The first is Maharashtra, second is Karnataka, third is Gujarat, fourth is Tamil Nadu, fifth is Haryana, sixth is Uttar Pradesh, seventh is Delhi, eighth is West Bengal, ninth is Telangana, and tenth is Odisha. We want to know how much Central Government assistance will be given to those States from where the amount is being collected. We want to know this fact in respect of our State also. How much Central Government assistance will be given? Sir, I will give you the statistics related to GST. I am ready with it but I wanted to make it short. Shall I give you all the figures percentage-wise from 2018 to 2023? I am having the statistics. But I will not go into it. र्र, आप बोलनेदीब्रजए। दर् ब्रमनि मेंर्ेतीन ब्रमनि आप लेलेंगे, तो हम अपनी बात िैर्े पूरी रख र्िेंगे? Sir, Now, I want to speak about the budget allocation so far as the State of West Bengal is concerned. I have given the data regarding the collection of taxes from West Bengal. Allocation to the health sector is only 6.7 per cent, allocation to education is 16.5 per cent, allocation to agriculture is 6.4 per cent, allocation to urban development is 4.2 per cent, roads, bridges and transport is 2 per cent, and allocation to home and police security is only 3.8 per cent. What is the contribution? Financial assistance is not provided to the States in proportion to the tax collected from the States. This money is not the Central Government’s money. This is the State Governments’ money. They are repeatedly saying that they are paying it to the Central Government. You are collecting taxes from the State Governments. You are rich because the States are there. They are saying that they are giving it. र्र, थोड़ा बोलनेदीब्रजए। Now, let me come to Enforcement Directorate (ED). I have no objection. What has ED done? You have given all the Statewise figures from 2021. The ED has commenced criminal cases against persons who have been arrested since 2021. Why has trial not begun even after three years? Why? .. Please listen to me. र्र, थोड़ा र्ब्रुनए ब्रि ई.डी. क्या िरती है। ई.डी. रडे िरनेिे ब्रलए जाती ह, ै तब फोिोग्राफर िो लेजाती है। अरस्े ि िरती है, फोिो खींचती है। उर्िेबाद तो िुछ नहीं है। बर् ई.डी. िहती है- ‘खींच मेरी फोिो, खींच’, ‘खींच मेरी फोिो, खींच’। येलोग और िुछ नहीं िरतेहैं।…
