Cost of living to rise in Pune: consultant

The Union Budget for 2012-13, according to Rishabh Parakh, Chartered Accountant (CA) and director of Moneyplant Consulting, a city-based tax and investment consulting firm, has promised nothing major for Puneities.

“If anything, this Budget would increase inflation and thereby increase the cost of living,” he said.

Parakh pointed that the decision of the finance minister to increase the service tax from 10% to 12% would result in an overall increase in the prices.

Translating the various Budgets for Pune, Parakh said that the decision to raise the tax exemption limit to Rs2 lakh would not affect much savings for the people.

“The Budget has slated that income in the range of Rs2-5 lakh would be taxed at 10% and incomes from Rs5-10 lakh would be taxed at 20%. This would make life difficult for the salaried class as majority of them come under the income slab of Rs8 lakh,” he said.

The move to make low cost housing affordable by allowing external commercial borrowing (ECB) would not make any major difference to Puneites looking for a new house. Other than school education, higher and technical education would pinch the purses of the common man.