FM: Wayanad rehab will proceed as planned

AFTER presenting the last full budget of the second Pinarayi Vijayan government, Finance Minister K N Balagopal spoke to TNIE, elaborating on his decision to eschew a populist approach in favour of financial well being. He also emphasised the importance of formulating a more sustainable model for KIIFB and threw light on the government's plan to proceed with the rehabilitation of Wayanad landslide victims.

- EXPRESS NEWS SERVICE @T'Puram

Excerpts How can you justify the increase in land tax? The UDF has already raised objections The increase will have minimal impact on common people. Although a 50% hike sounds significant percentage-wise, a person with 10 cents of land will only pay an additional ₹10, thereby raising the annual tax from ₹20 to ₹30. We haven't properly addressed the issue for the past 50 years, and Kerala currently has the lowest land tax in the country. We must consider that the government has invested ₹900 crore for the modernisation and digitisation of village offices alone.

Why did the budget avoid increasing social-welfare pension despite expectations?