KATHMANDU: Whip of the ruling, Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP), Prakash Chandra Pariyar, has said that the past governments have deceived the Dalit community in the budget but the upcoming fiscal year budget is reform-oriented.
Participating in the discussion on various headings of the Appropriation Bill 2083 in the House of Representatives on Tuesday, Whip Pariyar said that in the past the budget was allocated in the name of the Dalit Development Authority but without making any laws. “There are many examples of past governments lying to underprivileged regions and communities by just making a fuss in the budget. It was also said that 200 million rupees were allocated in the fiscal year 081/82 and 500 million rupees in 082/83. However, the necessary law was not made for the formation of the Dalit Development Authority. Since the law was not made, there was no way that a single penny would be spent. This was just an act of lying to the Dalit community.”
Defending the budget presented for the new FY, he opined that the budget is reform-oriented, middle-class-friendly, and youth-targeted, and that it has assimilated the essence of the Gen-Z generation.
He argued that doubling the income tax exemption limit to one million and reducing the highest rate from 39 to 29 percent is a historic and welcome step for the middle class.
Similarly, Pariyar claimed that the reduction in the number of ministries, private sector-friendly approach, finalization of capital gains tax in the stock market, and digital AI and startup packages, etc. have caught the attention of the new generation.
He presented an example of the inclusion of many issues of poverty alleviation and social security in this budget, and said that the provision of Rs. 1,000 nutrition allowance to 313,000 Dalit children is an example of this.
The RSP Whip also noted that programs such as preservation of traditional skills of the Dalit community, management of landless squatters, and model homestays in Dalit settlements of Madhesh, Karnali, and the Sudurpaschim provinces are commendable features of the new budget.
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