New budget targets India's poor

BBC NEWS | Business | New budget targets India's poor: "The first budget from new Finance Minister Palaniappan Chidambaram also increases military spending by nearly 18% to 770bn rupees ($16.73bn). He also unveiled an across-the-board 2% tax boost to raise money for education.

The budget highlights include:

* Promising to maintain economic growth of between 7% and 8%
* Spending an extra 100bn rupees ($2.2bn) but cutting the budget deficit to 4.4% of gross domestic product
* A 2% tax surcharge to fund education
* Increased defence expenditure to fund purchases of military equipment
* Raising the income tax exemption bar to over 100,000 rupees ($2,185)
* Allowing foreign firms to hold up to 74% of telecoms firms, 49% of civil aviation firms and 49% of insurance companies"