No need for new taxes to finance NYAY: Manmohan Singh

Former prime minister and senior Congress leader Dr Manmohan Singh on Saturday stated that there will be no need for any new taxes to finance party's poll promise of NYAY (Nyuntam Aay Yojana) in which an income support of Rs 72,000 would be provided annually, if the party voted to power in 2019."Congress is committed to fiscal discipline. NYAY scheme will cost between 1.2 - 1.5 per cent of GDP at its peak. Our nearly $3 trillion economy has the fiscal capacity to absorb this expenditure. There will be no need for any new taxes on the middle class to finance NYAY. The economic stimulus that NYAY will provide will further help in fiscal discipline," Singh said in a statement."NYAY will also help restart our economic engine that has come to a stop today. Money in the hands of the needy will stimulate demand in the economy which can then lead to increased economic activity and job creation, referred to as the Keynesian effect by economists. At a time when private investment and industrial