Congress party’s Working President Rahul Gandhi blasted Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s lackluster sops for the farmer’s community announced in the interim budget yesterday. In his budget speech, the Interim Finance Minister Piyush Goyal announced annual income support of Rs 6,000 to each farmer in the country.

Rs 6,000 comes down to Rs 500 per month and less than Rs 17 per day. In a vehement attack, Rahul took to Twitter and tweeted, “Dear NoMo, 5 years of your incompetence and arrogance has destroyed the lives of our farmers. Giving them Rs. 17 a day is an insult to everything they stand and work for.” Rahul also added the hashtag #AakhriJumlaBudget.

The Rs 6,000 annual financial aid to the farmers across India is brought under the scheme called PM-Kisan or “Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi.” The scheme would cost the exchequer a sum of Rs 75,000 crores annually. Farmers with less than 2 acres of land will be eligible for the cash aid. The money would be deposited directly to the farmer’s bank account in 3 installments of Rs 2,000 each.

However, the Congress party and all the BJP opposition parties are terming the PM-Kisan scheme as BJP’s move to pacify the agitated farmer’s community in the country. It remains to be seen whether this new initiative will help the BJP in the 2019 general elections.

Several people are calling the Union Budget pro-middle class. Some say, finally the Modi government has answered their prayers, while some are wondering if the benefits are real. Amid this excitement, let us also examine what the tax benefits really mean for the middle class.

Interim finance minister who announced that those with yearly taxable income of upto Rs. 5 lakh will get full tax rebate under section 87A. What this means is that anyone will net taxable income of upto Rs 5 lakh doesn’t have to pay any tax. But, those with even Rs. 100 extra i.e. if the taxable income is Rs. 5,00,100, then this benefit cannot be availed.

So, the income tax rebate for Rs. 5 lakh stands at Rs. 12,500. However, if a person earns even Rs. 100 more, he will not get any exemption as mentioned above. Why? For that, we will have to look at the Income Tax slabs. Currently, income up to Rs 2.5 lakh for resident individuals (age below 60 years) is exempt from tax, 5 per cent tax on income between Rs 250,001 to Rs 5 lakh; 20 per cent tax on income between Rs 500,001 and Rs 10 lakh; and 30 per cent tax on income above Rs 10 lakh.

This can be further explained as – If your net taxable income after availing all the deductions under section 80C to 80U of the Income tax act does not exceed Rs 5 lakh, then you will not be required to pay any tax. However, if your net taxable income (after availing deductions under section 80C to 80U), exceeds Rs. 5 lakh then taxes will be calculated as per the current tax structure.

What this means is that, it is not a straight exemption upto Rs. 5 lakh (income tax slabs remain unchanged). But, the Modi government has twisted the words to present it as rebate and not relief. Therefore, the tax calculation for anyone with taxable income above Rs. 5 lakh is detailed in the picture.

In Uttarandhra, Vizianagaram district is vital for any political party. This region has nine assembly seats and one Parliament seat.

In 2014, TDP’s Ashok Gajapathi Raju contest and won Vizianagaram Parliament. He went on to become union minister as well. Once again he is likely to get the same ticket. However, YSR Congress party has no candidates, leave about giving a fight, at least to contest.

The reason being most of the YSRCP leaders want MLA ticket instead of MP seat. They opine that they will lose grip on the district if contested as MP. Botsa Satyanarayana is the prominent leader among YSRCP and his wife Botsa Jhansi was former MP. But this time she is staying away from party activities due to unknown reasons.

So YSRCP had plans to field Botsa for Vizianagaram seat. But Botsa is preferring assembly ticket so that he can once again dominate in the district like he did earlier when he was in Congress party. So with Botsa and his wife showing no interesting on Vizianagaram Parliament seat, YSRCP has given the charge to Bellana Chandrasekhar who is prime supporter of Botsa. Even Bellana doesn’t want to contest for the MP seat and clarified the same to YSRCP.

Vizianagaram YSRCP assembly seat is confirmed to Veerabhadra Swami and so there are absolutely no takers. With no one coming forward to contest for Vizianagaram MP seat, YSRCP is confused and is looking for suitable candidates.

The Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) has come up with a new initiative that will tackle the hunger of the needy. It has teamed up with an NGO, Apple Home for Orphan Kids for installation of refrigerators at various places under the new thought ‘Feed the Need’.

People having excess food and willing to donate can leave food in these fridges. Those hungry can take food freely from the refrigerators.

The capacity of refrigerators is 530-litre and are installed Shilparamam and Jubilee check post initially. GHMC plans to expand the installation of fridges in eight other locations shortly and around the twin cities of Hyderabad and Secunderabad in future, said Zonal Commissioner Hari Chandana IAS.

Inside sources in Jana Sena reveal off the record that Pawan Kalyan may contest from any of the three constituencies- Anantapur, Tirupathi and Palakol. But which one among the three is most suitable and promising for Power Star? Let us see.

Palakol is the constituency which has been the fort of TDP since 1988. It was only in 2009 elections, the power has gone into the hands of Congress candidate Usha Rani. She defeated Chiranjeevi of PRP in the same election and was hailed as giant killer. Palakol, though the home town of mega family, failed to support Chiranjeevi in 2009. The present wave of Jana Sena cannot withstand the power of Nimmala Ramanaidu, the TDP candidate of the constituency. So, contesting from Palakol will be risky for Pawan Kalyan.

Anantapur is the second option that they are looking at. But Prabhakar Chowdary of TDP is very strong here, and the constituency is another strong fort of TDP. The second in the battle who may stand as strong opponent for TDP will be YSRCP candidate but not Janasena. So, Anantapur cannot be the right choice for Power Star.

Tirupathi is the third in line. It looks a bit favorable and safe bet. Chiranjeevi won from this place in 2009 elections. There may not be any notable obstacle for PK to contest from this constituency until and unless, TDP and YSRCP field strong and popular candidates.

It is needless to say that Pawan Kalyan needs to contest in this election to boost up the morale of Jana Sainiks. He cannot step back from contesting. Victory or defeat, he should take a bold step at least to print positive impression among the voters. Let us see what Power Star does.

Actor-turned-politician Jaya Prada Friday said she considered Amar Singh her “godfather” but added that people would continue to talk about them even if she tied him a rakhi.

She also made serious allegations against senior Samajwadi Party (SP) leader and Rampur MLA Azam Khan, including a claim that he “attempted an acid attack” on her.

The former Lok Sabha MP from Uttar Pradesh’s Rampur had started the Rashtriya Lok Manch along with Singh after being expelled from the SP.

On dealing with the “negativity” regarding her relationship with Singh, she said, “So many people have helped me in my life and Amar Singh ji is my godfather.”

She was in conversation with author Ram Kamal at an event in Mumbai.

“Because the state I was in, contesting elections with Azam Khan, as a woman, with acid attack threats, threat to my life… I couldn’t even tell my mother if I would come back alive whenever I left from home,” Jaya Prada claimed.

The 56-year-old said when she was being called names, “not one politician came out in support of me”.

“Mulayam Singh ji didn’t even call me once,” she added.

The actor-politician said she even contemplated suicide when her morphed pictures went viral on social media.

“Amar Singh was on dialysis and my morphed pictures were being circulated in the region. I was crying and saying I don’t want to live anymore, I want to commit suicide. I was going through that trauma and no one supported me,” she said.

“Only Amar Singh ji, who came out of his dialysis, stood next to me, supported me. What will you think of him? Godfather or someone else? Even if I tie rakhi to him, will people stop talking? I don’t care what people say,” she asserted.

Jaya said it is a “real war” for a woman to be a politician in “this male-dominated set-up.”

“Even as a sitting MP from a party, I wasn’t spared. Azam Khan harassed me. He attempted an acid attack on me. I had no certainty if I would be alive the next day. I would tell mother while leaving the house that I wasn’t sure if I would ever return home. I emerged out of it,” she claimed.

“Whatever they are showing in the film Manikarnika, I feel I was like that. A woman can also take the avatar of goddess Durga,” she added.

Within hours after BJP-led NDA government at the Centre announced its own version of Rythu Bandhu scheme in the Union Budget presented in Parliament on Friday, TRS chief and Telangana CM K Chandrasekhar Rao asked party leaders and cadre to take up negative campaign against PM Kisan Samman Nidhi as it may hurt the prospects of TRS in upcoming Lok Sabha polls.

With Lok Sabha polls just three months away, KCR does not want BJP to benefit out of this scheme in Telangana.This is because TRS government transfers higher amount to bank accounts of farmers than what BJP government had promised to do under its scheme.

KCR reportedly asked party leaders and cadre to project PM Modi’s Rythu Bandhu in bad light during election campaigning saying that TRS gives Rs 10,000 per acre per year to all farmers irrespective of how much land they own while Modi’s Rythu Bandhu gives just Rs 6,000 for all farmers who owns less than five acres.

Since TRS and BJP will be seeking votes on direct cash transfer to farmers in upcoming Lok Sabha polls, KCR wants his Rythu Bandhu to get political mileage than Modi’s scheme in Telangana.

KCR is planning to release national wide advertisements in all top national newspapers and TV channels explaining how TRS Rythu Bandhu is superior to Modi’s Rythu Bandhu and wants himself to project as better leader at national level than Modi during Lok Sabha polls.