The Rediff Budget Chat Transcripts

• 'The Budget has been pro-banking sector'
  -Chanda Kochhar, Executive Director, ICICI Bank.

• 'Budget has made a sincere attempt in deepening G2 reforms'
  -Jiban K Mukhopadhyay, Economic Adviser, Tata Services Limited.

• 'Budget is becoming more about fiscal mgt, less about policy'
  -Vetri Subramaniam, senior VP, Kotak Mahindra Mutual Fund.

• 'Easier repatriation, higher infrastructure spending will help FDI'
  -Sai Sreekanth, CTO, Axcend, VC.

• 'Budget has nothing to stimulate growth'
  -Sunil Alagh, managing director, Britannia Industries Limited.

• 'There is no drastic change in policies'
  -Sudhir Jalan, CMD, Bells Control Ltd and former president, FICCI.

• 'I will be making a statement regarding dismantling of APM'
  -Ram Naik, Minister for Petroleum and Natural Gas.

• 'This is a balanced Budget'
  -Rajan Mittal, joint managing director, Bharti Enterprises.

• 'Budget is astute and commercially savvy'
  -R S Lodha, president, FICCI.

• 'Why attack kerosene and gas users?'
  -R Vaidyanathan , professor (finance), IIM-B.

• 'No effort to improve investment or productivity of capital'
   -Professor B B Bhattacharya, additional secretary (economic     advisor), PMO.

• 'Budget reiterates govt's commitment on reforms'
  -Pradipto Ghosh, additional secretary (economic advisor), PMO.

• 'We were having unrealistic expectations from the Budget'
  -Pradeep Dokania, executive vice president, DSP Merill Lynch.

• 'Budget will have good long-term impact on our country'
  -Pankaj Seith, Head-Marketing, HDFC Standard Life Insurance.

• 'The Budget is encouraging for the steel sector'
  -Naveen Jindal, MD, Jindal Steel and Power Limted.

• 'The Budget has not done enough'
  -N Kumar, vice chairman, Sanmar group and past president CII.

• 'Budget is by and large negative for the common investor'
  -K V S Manian, COO, Kotak Mahindra Finance.

• 'This Budget has a lot of positive things'
  -Motilal Oswal, MD, Motilal Oswal Securities Ltd.

• 'In the given situation, FM tried his best'
  -Kirit Somaiya, BJP Member of Parliament.

• 'The Budget is clearly anti-middle class'
  -K Ganesh, CEO, CustomerAsset.

• 'It is a decent Budget directionally'
  -K B Chandrasekhar, CEO, jamcracker.

• 'Budget says a lot; question is its implementation'
  -Jerry Rao chairman and CEO, Mphasis BFL.

• 'This is a mixed Budget of sorts'
  -Harish Bijoor, COO, Zip Telecom.

• 'Second generation reforms will continue in this Budget'
  -Dr U Sankar, noted economist and former director, Madras School
   of Economics.

• 'I rate this Budget as the worst since 1947'
  -Dr Subramaniam Swamy, Janata Party President.

• 'Budget does not show direction for the future'
  -Dr Isher Judge Ahluwalia, director and CEO, ICRIER.

• 'Can we put full responsibility on Mr Sinha's shoulder?'
  -Deena Mehta, former acting president, Bombay Stock Exchange.

• 'The Budget is not at all exciting'
  -Chirayu Amin, CMD, Alembic Ltd and past president FICCI.

• 'Why should taxes be tampered with every year?'
  -Arvind Jolly, president, Indian Merchants Chamber.

• 'Increase in defence allocation sounds good'
  -Air Marshal S K Sareen, former Indian Air Force Chief.

• 'The Budget is a step in the right direction'
  -Arun Firodia, chairman, Kinetic Engineering Ltd.

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The Rediff Budget Special
Run-Up To The Budget
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