Budget 2013 makes fun expensive! - Times of India

Dipika Pillay, TNN Mar 1, 2013, 12.00AM IST (Budget 2013 makes fun expensive! ) This year, everything from eating out and watching a movie to buying a smart phone, will come at a heftier price and the cash-strapped youngsters are a jittery lot While some are terming the budget to be a people-friendly one ahead of the general elections, others are talking about how women are the focus. But even as Budget 2013 was unfolding on Thursday, city youngsters were glued to the television screens to find out how much of an impact it will have on their allowances. And looks like all their worst fears have come true! College students are pretty bummed that from now on, everything from buying smart phones to heading out on a movie outing, threatens to leave them broke. When V Siddhanthi of St Francis College started following the Budget 2013 updates, the first thing she wondered was if Union Minister P Chitambaram and HRD Minister Kapil Sibal collectively framed the budget. "Looks like the Budget has conspired to make us study more! There are already so many taxes levied in restaurants (service, VAT, special) and now this budget aims to increase the cost of eating out all the more! I think I'll have to pack a lunch box to college everyday from now on. Forget birthday lunches and dinners, eating out will be restricted to just pani puri and bandi Chinese now," she laments. Claiming that Budget 2013 seems to be anti-fun for youngsters, 22-year-old V Dhaval, who has recently been recruited by an animation company, says, "I was planning to buy my dad a smart phone for his birthday and now with this six per cent increase in duty for phones over `2,000, I will have to reconsider my plans. Who buys a phone cheaper than that anyway!" Dreading the choice of birthday gifts he will receive this year, he adds, "Gadgets are the safe bet when it comes to birthday gifts for guys. But now, I think girls will go back to gifting us tacky T-shirts and biker gloves." What's got cinema-loving Hyderabadis sulking the most is the price of a simple movie date skyrocketing. An affair that could have been wrapped up within `500 might now make a dent worth `1,000 at least, counting all the add-on costs of popcorns, colas, petrol, parking rates and the eating out that follows! Sanober Francis, a communication student, says, "These taxes keep increasing, but our pocket money never gets a hike. Watching movies is our favourite timepass, but now we have to think twice before doing that too. At this rate, movie-going will surely go from being a twice-a-month affair to a once-in-two-months event." The Budget has led Ravi Babu, an engineering student, to re-think his own personal budget. "My worst fears have come true with this budget. Everything from buying cars to watching movies has been increased. Either I'll have to cut down on my dates or seriously start looking for a part-time job now," he says. Online buzz A muse sing @LoKarloFollow: Still waiting for Entertainment Tax to be charged on people who come to bar and don't drink but enjoy watching others getting drunk. Reha. @fukatladki: I don't really care about the technical shit here, I just do not want the Women Bank to be painted Pink and have Heart shaped counters.Gah! Ramesh Srivats @rameshsrivats: #Budget2013 Expecting a new tax-friendly gameshow called Kaun Banega 99-Lakhpati. iDK @yesdeekay: @fakingnews or "Smoking is injurious to health and wealth!" #Budget2013 Pricey affair -Service tax on all AC restaurants -Excise duty on cigarettes, cigars and cheerots increased by about 18 % -Cell phones priced above `2,000 will have a excise duty of six per cent -Excise duty on Sports Utility Vehicles (SUV) will be raised to 30% from the previous 27%. -Customs duty on luxury cars increased to 100% from 75%. Import duty on motorcycles above 800cc will go up from 60% to 75% via Technology - Google News http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=t&fd=R&usg=AFQjCNFxZosJBB89NkuszmulzUtKQLyT7g&url=http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/life-style/people/Budget-2013-makes-fun-expensive/articleshow/18731077.cms

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