Budget: Women seek low tax, low interest rates

In a pre-Budget consultation meeting, a women's delegation met Finance Minister P Chidambaram and asked him to provide loans at lower interest to the fairer sex.

The delegation was led by Union Women and Child Development Minister Renuka Chowdhary and comprised non-governmental organisations, FICCI Ladies Organisation (FLO), and Bollywood actress Preity Zinta.

"We want home loan rates to be lowered specifically for the single women. Single women have no collateral security to offer and without a supportive bank balance, they remain homeless through out their life, this needs consideration in the budget," Chowdhary told newspersons.

She also raised the issue of widows in various parts of the country after their farmer husbands commit suicide.

"Widows of farmers who commit suicide have nowhere to go. There should be some measures in the budget for them. They need loans at a softer interest and some waive off in the previous loans taken by their dead husbands."

"Though our ministry is introducing supporting plans like skill upgrade and small scale supporting vocation training for their daughters and sons to improve the economic conditions of these families but this area needs special focus," Chowdhary said.

Preity Zinta also joined Chowdhary and requested specific allocation to deal with the problem of female foeticide.

"There is data that shows that everyday about 7,000 female foeticides are being carried out in different parts of the country. We need to create some kind of pressure group that would travel and create awareness among rural people. And if central government should support financially, the group can come out with the weak areas where we need to focus to improve the situation," she said.

FLO raised the issue to allocate funds to encourage specific courses for women.

Representative from All India Bunkar Congress, (a weavers' organisation) B H Ansari said, "Women employed in handloom sector have always been neglected. If the budget has some provisions that can provide them economic support, that would be a boon for them. Handloom is in great demand and contributes to the exchequer but they suffer due to low wages."

"Attention towards this with some incentive schemes would improve their economic conditions," he added.