BSS, Sangsad Bhaban :
Describing the advanced tax on savings certificates as a barrier to boosting investment, Agriculture Minister Begum Matia Chowdhury Tuesday said such imposition discourages especially the small savers including pensioners and the similar people, who mainly depend on their ultimate cash package in the life’s fag end.
Taking part in the general discussion on the proposed budget for FY15 in the Jatiya Sangsad, Matia Chowdhury called for perpetuating the existing 10 percent in advanced tax on savings tools as the final settlement in the greater interest of the savers.
“I personally oppose deduction of 10 percent in advanced tax on savings tools as per the existing system because it affects the small savers, especially the pensioners, who consider investment in saving tools as their safety net,” she said and proposed to raise the maximum investment ceiling in saving certificates to Tk 60 lac from the existing Tk 30 lack.
Referring to the sluggish trend in investment, Matia
Chowdhury said the immediate past grand alliance government could not promote overall desired investment during the last five years. “It was the opposition, not the government, which was mainly responsible for that poor trend,” she said.
Matia said the opposition BNP-Jamaat clique unleashed a reign of terror across the country in support of their demand for caretaker government and such destructive activities took a huge toll on infrastructure and industrial sector ultimately affecting the overall growth rate.
Terming the proposed budget for fiscal year 2014-15 (FY15) as pro-people and development friendly, the agriculture minister vowed to build a poverty and hunger free prosperous Bangladesh under the leadership of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.
She came down heavily on those who are claiming that allocation for the agriculture sector in the budget is not adequate and said allocation for agriculture sector has been
increased to Tk 12390 crore in the FY15 from Tk 12279 crore in 2013-14.
Besides, the agriculture minister always gets money from the finance ministry whenever it needs because the Prime Minister and the finance minister are very much sympathetic to this ministry which has helped the country achieve autarky in food production, she added.
She said agriculture sector is not the only sector and the government has to give attention to other sectors in the budget. The government has planned to construct Padma Bridge with own finance and the finance minister has proposed to allocate Tk 8,100 crore for this mega project, she said, adding that if this bridge is constructed, the agriculture sector will be benefited. Highlighting the massive successes the agriculture sector achieved over the last five years, Matia Chowdhury said overall food production has been increased by 66 lac tons and rice production by 53 lac tons during the last five years. “It has been possible because of the government’s timely decision, its patriotism and above all the dynamic leadership of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina who always guides the agriculture minister in attaining self-sufficiency in food production,” she added.
Matia Chowdhury said the agriculture sector has witnessed a revolutionary development over the last five years and farming is now increasingly becoming commercialized and after meeting local demands, Bangladesh is exporting vegetables and other farm products.
“We’ve been able to remove hunger from the country . . . none is now starving; people are now getting food as per their demand,” she said adding poverty rate came down to 26.4 percent in 2014 from 33.4 percent in 2009 while rate of hardcore poor to 11.9 percent in 2014 from 19.3 percent in 2009.
