Trade bodies of Kozhikode welcome Union Budget

The major trade bodies of Kozhikode have welcomed the Union Budget presented by Finance Minister Nirmala Seetharaman on Saturday (February 1).

The Malabar Chamber of Commerce has termed it a progressive Budget that would pave the way to the economic development of the country through tax reforms, business relations, and strategic investments. A major attraction of the Budget was that it had put forth a set of guidelines for the Global Capacity Centres (GCC), especially in tier two cities, a press release from the chamber said.

The Malabar Development Council maintained that the Budget was beneficial to small and medium businesses, farmers, education, health, construction and tourism sectors. The Council welcomed the tax deduction which surpassed expectations, the deduction of the cost of essential medicines, and special care to the elderly were appreciated.

However, the Council expressed disappointment in neglect of Kerala when Bihar was blessed with several new projects. The centre’s negligence of the survivors of the Mundakkai-Chooralmala landslide in Wayanad was especially criticised.

Co-Chairman of the Port Sub Committee of the Calicut Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Munshid Ali, pointed out that the boost to infrastructure funding, especially inland navigation and other transport systems could be beneficial to the airports and ports in Kerala if only the state government exert pressure on the Centre and device projects accordingly. The customs duty exemption to capital goods for ship breaking will be a boost to the shipping sector, he added.