Budget 2015: Smoking, eating out, air travel to be costlier

NEW DELHI: Smoking and consumption of other tobacco items will be more expensive, while an increase in service tax rate would make costlier a whole lot of other activities including air travel, eating out and paying bills.

Continuing the trend set by his many predecessors, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley today came down heavily on smokers and tobacco consumers with a steep increase in excise rate in tax proposals in Budget 2015-16.

While increase in service tax rate to 14 per cent would make a whole lot of things more expensive, he spared the common man from price hikes on many commonly used day-to-day items by keeping the duties unchanged.

Those that would turn cheaper include leather footwear, locally made mobiles, computer tablets, microwave ovens, peanut butter, packaged fruits, ambulance service and agarbattis.

Following is a list of what will be cheaper and costlier:

EXPENSIVE

* Cigarettes and other tobacco products

* Completely built imported commercial vehicles

* Cement

* Aerated, flavoured drinks and packaged water

* Plastic bags and sacks

* Business and executive class air travel

* Visit to amusement and theme park

* Music concerts

* Liquor, chit fund and lottery

CHEAPER

* Leather footwear priced above Rs 1,000 per pair

* Locally made mobile phones, LED/LCD panels, LED lights and LED Lamps

* Solar Water heater

* Pacemakers, ambulance and ambulance services

* Computer tablets

* Agarbattis

* Microwave ovens

* Refrigerator compressors

* Peanut butter, packaged fruits and vegetables

* Visit to museum, zoo and national park.