INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
government should lower the corporate tax to 18 per cent and increase the public expenditure on healthcare and education.A statement by the
Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) said their "suggested election manifesto" favoured the "lowering of corporate income tax to 18 per
cent with no exemptions to make Indian tax rates globally competitive".Currently, the corporate tax for companies with turnover of up to Rs
250 crore is 25 per cent, and for those with a turnover of over Rs 250 crore it is 30 per cent.The suggested manifesto said public
Reducing India's maternal and infant mortality ratios must be taken up on priority basis," the statement said.The CII note advocates
raising public expenditure on education to 6 per cent of GDP
It suggests making vocational training part of the curriculum and incentivising better performance of teachers with upgraded digital school
for RD (research and development) to 1 per cent of GDP," it said.The industry body also targets an average GDP growth rate of 8 per cent per
annum for the next five years and called for reducing the Good and Services Tax (GST) rate slabs to 2 or 3, from the current four slabs of
envisages a continued high pace of reforms, enabling India to take a lead in a world of multiple transformations in the global and
technology environment."According to the suggested manifesto, industrial corridors and sector-specific industrial parks need to be promoted
at lenient rates, it said.In the infrastructure sector, public-private partnerships needs to be strengthened, and the issues of delayed
projects and delayed payments to project contractors must be addressed, it added.On electoral reforms, CII suggests devising a model for
simultaneous elections of Parliament and State Legislatures from 2024.CII said it has shared the suggested election manifesto with all the
major political parties, both national and regional, for their consideration and inclusion in their party manifestos.
