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Union Budget 2016: When he gets up to present Union Budget 2016, his third and arguably the most challenging, FM Arun Jaitley faces an extremely tough task of balancing the aspirations of the income tax payers, needs of the agricultural sector as well as the industrial sector on Monday. His biggest task would be to garner resources to boost public spending to raise economic growth rate into double digits and all of this is to be achieved amid global headwinds. (AP)
1. On the income tax front, something that directly affects the common man taxpayer, Arun Jaitley's Union Budget 2016 may continue with the status quo on the tax slabs while it may tinker with the exemptions. However, Economic Survey does not want any sops to be given to the taxpayer. (AP) 
2. Rising rural distress because of back-to-back droughts have put considerable pressure on Arun Jaitley to allocate more to social schemes in the Union Budget 2016, while at the same time he has to win back foreign investors craving for faster economic reforms – the so-called big bang reforms. On the subject of reforms, Arun Jaitley may open more sectors to foreign investment and give tax breaks for labour-intensive sectors such as leather and jewelry in Budget 2016. (AP) -
3. Arun Jaitley's difficulties in Union Budget 2016 have been compounded by the huge payout of Rs 1.02 lakh crore that will become necessary on account of the 7th Pay Commission recommendations for government employees. How much he does this without compromising on the previously-announced goal of lowering the fiscal deficit to 3.5 per cent of the GDP next year is to be seen. Besides implementation of the 7th Pay Commission, Arun Jaitley also faces challenge of bank recapitalisation. (AP)
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4. Arun Jaitley is likely to fulfil his last year's promise of gradual reduction of corporate tax from 30 per cent to 25 per cent over four years. It is expected that he may begin the exercise in the Union Budget 2016 that may be accompanied by withdrawal of tax exemptions to keep the exercise revenue neutral. (AP)
5. To shore up revenues to meet the increased expenditure, the Arun Jaitley may need to increase indirect tax rates or introduce new taxes in Union Budget 2016. Service Tax, raised to 14.5 per cent last year, may see a hike to prepare for the level of 18 per cent being envisaged in the GST. (AP) -
6. Further, new cess may be coming in Budget 2016 to fund initiatives such as Startup India or Digital India and other programmes is being speculated, similar to the Swachh Bharat cess levied last year. (AP)
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Stand Up India scheme: There would be a special support structure for innovation based start-ups. "The government will unveil a blue print for start-ups to ease the process of setting up new venture very shortly," he said. Mishra observed that availability of adequate credit was always a major issue and his ministry has taken several initiatives to address the challenges. (AP)
8. With agriculture reeling from drought and lower crop prices, the government is likely to retain spending on the rural employment guarantee programme, expand crop insurance and boost irrigation outlays in Budget 2016. (AP) -
9. "Even if budgetary consolidation continues, India’s fiscal metrics will remain weaker than rating peers in the near term," analysts at Moody's Investors Service said. Foreign investors have sold a net USD 2.4 billion in shares this year, the second-biggest outflows in Asia excluding China. (AP)
10. Union Budget 2016 will need to focus on the commodity driven sectors by providing protection measures, since these sectors are stressed due to the collapse in global demand and oversupply. Arun Jaitley has shifted the proportion of expenditure toward infrastructure and away from subsidies in the last two Budgets. (AP)
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