Keeping an eye on balancing inflation amid challenges of recovering from the coronavirus pandemic, the Jatiya Sangsad finally passed the Tk6.78 lakh crore Bangladesh budget for fiscal 2022-23 on June 30, 2022, at the budget session. The budget is titled “Return to the Path of Development; Leaving the COVID-19 Behind,” which will come into effect from July 1. However, on June 9, the country’s Finance Minister, AHM Mustafa Kamal, placed the budget proposal in Parliament, followed by extensive discussions in 20 sessions before being passed by lawmakers. So, Bangladesh Parliament Passed BDT 6.78 Lakh Crore Budget.
Of the approved budget allocation, the operating expenditure is set at Tk. 411,406 crore, and the development expenditure is Tk. 25,9617 crore, of which Tk246,066 crore is reserved as development program expenditure annually. About 55% or Tk. 3.7 lakh crore of the budget allocation will arrive from the National Board of Revenue (NBR), 2.6% from non-NBR tax, and 6.6% from non-tax revenue.
The budget debt, barring grants, will be Tk. 2,45,064 crore, 5.5% of the Gross Domestic Product. To satisfy the deficit, the government has placed a target of taking Tk. 112,458 crore from foreign sources and Tk. 146,335 crore from domestic sources.
The Finance Minister also moved the Appropriations Bill, 2022, seeking a budgetary allocation of Tk. 8,83,751 crore, which was passed by voice vote. Opposition and independent MPs were present in the House when the Appropriation Bill was passed in Parliament, and they did not raise any voice against it.
Of the total allocation, about 27.05% was kept for social infrastructure, out of which Tk. 1,67,524 crore was allocated to the human resources sector, including education, health, and other related industries. In addition, Tk. 86,798 crores was nominated for overall agriculture and rural development. Tk. 79,026 crores for communication infrastructure and Tk. 26,065 crore for the power and energy sub-sector.
Besides, a total of Tk is a total of Tk for public-private partnerships, financial assistance to different industries, subsidies, and equity investments in state-owned, commercial, and financial institutions. 53,155 crore has been made, which is 7.84% of the total allocation.
An allocation of Tk. 80,375 crore has been made for the payments of interest, which is 11.85% of the total funding. Earlier in the day, various proposals to trim the budget were discussed in Parliament but were rejected by voters. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina was present throughout the session, chaired by Speaker Shirin Sharmin Chowdhury. The Parliament session began on June 5, 2022, having 20 sessions in total.
The latest budget has kept only one of three proposed offshore amnesty tax facilities, allowing repatriation of any undisclosed asset by paying a 7% tax while removing the options of maintaining wealth abroad by paying a minimum tax. Under the approved changes, if the offshore assets of an individual taxpayer are not disclosed and are later discovered, the government might slap a fine tantamount to the value of the concealed assets. In such a case, any local assets of the taxpayer concerned might also be confiscated and auctioned by the government.
The Finance Bill, which affects the new taxation, has also eased the conditions to avail of a 2.5% corporate tax cut facility. At the same time, the requirement of submitting proof of returns for companies and firms has been relaxed. This, however, will not be applicable to individuals. It is to mention that the Jatiya Sangsad handed a budget of Tk. 5.93 lakh crore for the 2021-22 fiscal year.
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