B.N.BHARATH, Chief Manager, SBI, Bangalore

1. The salaried class are put into a great loss as the incidence of fringe benefit is passed on from employer to employee. Actually, the government should not be unduly worried who will foot the tax. It needs only to ensure that tax is collected, who ever is paid that. There are employers who are willing to accept the burden. Government should revert back to earlier provision. 2. In the recent financial meltdown in US, their economy suffered due to reckless spending habit and scant respect to savings culture. India, relatively, was less affected, thanks to the high savings rate. It is time the finance minister encourages savings by individual tax payers. Investment in infrastructure and development related savings instruments is to be encouraged. 3. Banks provide impetus to the overall economic development of the nation. It is imperative to encourage bank deposits. Interest income upto Rs.1 lac p.a. should be made tax free, so that people channelise their savings to this legal route rather than falling prey to private chit funds, sky promising blade companies, unproductive spending etc. 4. Due to unprecedented price rise in various commodities, food grains , pulses etc. there is periodical rise in dearness allowance (DA), though it offsets the price rise to a limited extent. As these items are already taxed by way of VAT, excise, sales tax etc. it becomes double taxation to tax the DA. Hence, it is suggested that this element of DA, to begin with at least 50%, to be made tax free. 5. Standard Deduction should be brought back to salaried class just as the benefit of depreciation is available to business segment. 6.. Government should encourage corporate, institutions to plant saplings in a big way to check global warming thereby protecting the environment. The encouragement can be in the form of sort of tax concession as in case of wind energy etc.

B.N.BHARATH
Chief Manager,
Mid Corporate Regional Office,
State Bank of India,
BANGALORE 560 001.