Consumer activists demand hike in food subsidy

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New Delhi, January 8:: Consumer activists have underlined the need for a nodal body to deal with consumer issues. They also urged to increase food subsidy for people below poverty line, raise income tax exemption limit and strengthen investor protection mechanism.

In a pre-Budget meeting with finance minister Yashwant Sinha here on Tuesday, they supported liberalisation but expressed concern over imposition of user charges in public services without improving the quality of those services.

“The government should pursue the matters related to consumer protection with the World Trade Organisation (WTO) and set up a nodal body, which will act as a watchdog and cater to the paramount interest of consumers. There should be such bodies in Saarc also,” said director of the Institute of Social Research DK Lahiri.

Voluntary Organisation in Interest of Consumer Education (Voice) director Sriram Khanna told the minster that public distribution should be targeted and the food subsidy for people below the poverty line should be enhanced.

Emphasising increase in income tax exemption limit, the consumer protection groups demanded that upper limit for provident fund deposit should be doubled to Rs 1,20,000.

“The earlier limit has become inadequate due to erosion of value of money and decline in interest rates over the years,” Mr Khanna said, adding there should not be any further reduction in interest rates on contractual and small savings.

Consumer protection council secretary B Vaidyanathan asked government to remove the anomalies in the recent rule on taxing perks and exempt donations to consumer forums from tax.