With the government unable to make much of a dent in reducing populist subsidies, total expenditure in the current year (1998-99) has gone up by a whopping Rs 50,000 crore over last year. As a result of which the year's fiscal deficit is a mirror image of that budgeted for -- it's 6.5 per cent of GDP against the target of 5.6 per cent.

Nor does Sinha expect too much success at expenditure control next year, and haskept his fiscal deficit target at around 6 per cent -- the increase in GDP figures due to a new methodology and a change in the budget accounting, though, have helped him show the next year's fiscal deficit target as an impressively low 4.4 per cent.

Not surprisingly, Sinha was on the defensive during most of his budget speech, and kept comparing his budget with that of his predecessor, P. Chidambaram -- so, Sinha crowed, this year's current account deficit is 1.4 per cent of GDP, last year's was 1.6 per cent, and this year's fiscal deficit is 5.9 per cent, Chidambaram's was 6.3 per cent, using comparable figures. Congratulating himself, he said: ``Hum layee hain toofan se, kashti nikaal ke.''

Sinha's greatest achievement in carrying the economic reforms forward, of course, is what he has proposed in terms of simplification of both excise and customs duties. At one stroke, he has reduced the number of excise duties from the present 11 to just 3, centred around a mean or central rate of 16 per cent.There is a merit rate of 8 per cent, and a demerit rate of 24 per cent. To ensure that there is no major fall in tax collections, he has put a surcharge to keep excise tariffs on certain goods like automobiles at the existing rate of 40 per cent, but the trend towards lowering and simplification of excise is evident.

As a result of the revision in the rates of customs and excise for petroleum products, there has been a sharp cut of upto Rs 6.95 in prices of cooking gas (LPG), and a marginal reduction in prices of petrol and aviation fuel (ATF). So cooking gas will cost Rs 6 less at Rs 146 per cylinder in Delhi, Rs 170 in Calcutta down from Rs 176.95, Rs 147.85 in Mumbai against the present Rs 153.90 and Rs 155.30 in Chennai which is Rs 6.40 less than the prevailing prices. But diesel would cost Rs 1.05 higher in Delhi at Rs 9.94.

The prices of petrol have also come down marginally upto 16 paise as a result of changes in the duty structure. As per the revised prices, petrol (motor spirit-87) would cost Rs23.80 (against prevailing Rs 23.94) in Delhi. The primary focus of this year's budget, of course, is the agriculture sector where, apart from increasing outlays significantly, Sinha has made a valiant attempt to bring in genuine ground-level participation. In the event, Gram Panchayats have been made the primary mover for several new initiatives on water management, primary education and health facilities, and developing of waste-lands. While the modalities differ for different schemes, the broad thrust of the schemes is to link central funding to involvement of gram panchayats. In the case of primary education, for instance, gram panchayats are to provide the building for schools as well as the teacher, and have to run it for two years before getting assistance.

Whether these lofty ideas will yield results is, of course, an open question -- Sinha, for example, managed to gloss over expenditure control by saying the government will have an Expenditure Reforms Commission. As Anand Mahindra, MD of Mahindra &Mahindra put it: ``Constitution of several committees by Sinha means that it is a pregnant budget, where something may happen in future.''

Chidambaram complex & Laloo's underwear

Misty eyed minister:

For the first time in independent India, the Budget was presented at 11 am, not 5 pm as was the normal practice keeping in mind the time in London. ``It was time to discard the long-standing tradition of British Raj,'' Yashwant Sinha said. ``There's a feeling of the dawn of a new beginning as I present the last Budget of this century.''

High on Bihar:

Friday's vote on the Bihar motion was squeezed into the speech. And that, too, in Hindi, perhaps to reach a wider audience: Kal ki shandar jeet ke baad yeh tai ki agla teen budget bhi ham hi pesh karenge'' (After yesterday's fantastic victory, it's clear that we'll present the next three budgets too). The Treasury benches cheered, the Opposition jeered.

Chidambaram complex:

`I'mbetter than Chidambaram,' was Sinha's recurring theme and answer to those cynics who keep comparing him with P Chidambaram. So today's speech had: This year's current account deficit is 1.4 per cent of GDP, last year's was 1.6 per cent; This year's fiscal deficit is 5.9 per cent, Chidambaram's was 6.3 per cent, using comparable figures.

1999, A love story:

Giving tax benefits for exports of film, music, Sinha said: ``It will be our endeavour to encourage the entertainment industry dil se...so that it does not turn to the Government to say hum aapke hain kaun.''

Illusions of grandeur:

Sinha invoked the great sage Kautilya when he said that the average excise rate is 16 per cent, roughly a sixth, or Shadbhaga, as advised by the sage Kautilya, born in Pataliputra. Adding that he, too, came from the same part of the world.

You and your underwear:

Laloo and Mulayam kept interrupting Sinha saying they wanted the speech in Hindi, Sinha carried on and when the speech ended, thegloves were off. Looking at the Treasury Benches, the RJD chief said: ``Aapke yahan koi Hindi janne wala ho to Hindi me parh dijiye'' (If anyone from you knows Hindi, then please read the Budget speech in Hindi). At this point, Sinha got up. ``The budget is being telecast across the world,'' he said and then took a dig: ``Some years ago, Laloo ji had gone abroad to invite foreign investment in Bihar. There he had said he doesn't wear underwear.'' Many wondered at the relevance until Laloo clarified: ``The underwear symbolised foreign goods. We wear its swadeshi substitute, langot.''