Shivani Talashilkar and Madhvi Sagne were tucking into samosas outside the Wankhede Stadium, Bombay, even as, in Parliament, the nation's finance minister was, in his fourth Budget speech, announcing the provision of soft loans for students who wish to pursue technical education or go abroad for further studies. "Hi," I interrupted them. "Aren't you interested in the Budget?" "We are trainee architects," said Shivani. "I checked the Railway Budget to know if there is any increase in the local train fare. But I heard that Mamata Banerjee is pursuing her career, hence she has not increased the fares." "Are you not interested in seeing the Budget telecast?" I was persistent. "Do you know who is delivering it?" "Manmohan Singh?" Shivani was unsure. "Oh, ya. Is he?" Madhavi asked. Then, they gave up. And told me, "We aren't interested." At noon, just as Yashwant Sinha revealed he had increased the postal rates, I bought a ticket for the stadium's North Stand. It cost me Rs 120. Australia, who were playing India, were 180 for 5. Adam Gilchrist was on 48. In the middle row of the North Stand, I bumped into Jay Shah and six of his friends. All of them were from Jaihind College and they were whistling, clapping and vigorously cheering the Indian team. When Gilchrist scored 50, the crowd applauded him generously. Gilchrist and Mathew Hayden were, by now, scoring furiously. An irritated Jay and his friends started booing Srinath, who was fielding near the boundary line. "Not interested in the Budget?" I asked Jay, who is studying business management. "Are you joking?" he asked. "Cricket is our religion, not the Budget." Vibhuti Patel, a doctor in labour economics and an activist leader, was not interested in the Budget either. "I would not like to waste my energy by watching the Budget telecast. I work for the upliftment of women, minorities, tribals, Dalits and displaced people. This Budget will not do much for them. The government demands so much paper work from the poor people that even they are becoming self-sufficient. They know that the government's support is superficial. That is why these groups have evolved their own "safety nets". People who control money control the government's money too. The poor people have seen through this game. Take any sector -- education, health, employment, disaster relief -- and you will find that people are increasingly depending on outside help or their own resources. Except for the BIMARU states (Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh), the depressed sections and active social groups don't care for the Budget. They do not depend on budgetary sops. After all," she asked me angrily, "don't you think the Budget serves and deals with financial world only? Do they care about us?" Investment advisor Chetan Parikh adds to her diatribe, "The whole thing is sickening. I think the anticipation should be removed. It should become more predictable. People should know the game plan. After all, we know there is limited scope to fiddle with the taxes since they are at an optimum level. The finance minister cannot reduce our taxes, he can only widen the tax net. Unless the government is thinking of decontrolling of sugar, petrol and pharmaceuticals, there can not be meaningful manoeuvering. Then why this drama?" Parikh expects the economy to become more global in a few years. "Then," he says, "the degree of expectation from the Budget will reduce. Besides, there are many events outside the Budget which affect business." Chartered accountant Yagnesh Desai agrees. "I am a tax consultant, so the Budget is important for me. But my clients are disillusioned. They think politicians use the Budget to gain popular support. Look at Mamata!! Today's Budgets are only feel-good, not bold. Does any finance minister have courage to impose just one per cent tax on the agricultural sector? This non-serious approach has certainly reduced the importance of February 28." Senior Editor Sheela Bhatt preferred to watch Gilchrist's pyrotechnics rather than the FM's speech Illustration: Uttam Ghosh Do tell us what you think of this diary
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