Prices of several commodities go up as Union Budget proposals kick in from April 1

BENGALURU: With the new financial year 2023-24 beginning, the Union Budget proposals like revised tax, tariffs and benefits, electronic and electrical goods have taken effect. This, in effect, means that prices of several commodities have also seen an increase.

Explaining the effect of the Budget proposals, financial expert Vijay Rajesh said, “The 2023-24 budget proposals come into effect from April 1. In this Union budget, tariffs on imports were hiked to boost the ‘Make in India’ initiative. This means, import duty on items like electric kitchen chimneys, TVs, electric cycles, electric vehicles will rise. Through the ‘Make in India’ initiative, the government intends to encourage employment generation. Customs duty on tobacco products like cigarettes, pan masala, tobacco have also increased”.

He also pointed out that the government had raised the rebate ceiling for personal income tax from the current Rs 5 lakh to Rs 7 lakh in the new tax regime. “This is a good development as people in the income bracket will be left with more money in their pockets. The government made some other changes in taxation too”, he said.

A financial expert Vijay said import tariffs (duty) will be increased in new financial year.

Gold is the second most imported item after crude oil. Duties on articles made from gilt and bars of platinum, gold and silver have also increased. This is the best time for senior citizens to invest as the maximum limit for the Senior Citizen Savings Scheme has been enhanced from Rs 15 lakh to Rs 30 lakh, Vijay pointed out.

Due to the rise in prices of raw materials, production cost of companies will also increase, but they will pass it on to the end consumers. Apart from this, there may be an increase of 1 per cent on essential medicines. The National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority has already given permission to increase the prices of 800 essential medicines, and the new price also comes into effect from April 1″, Vijay added.