The budget, feel the captains of the industry, has been presented with the elections in mind. But the lakhs of people employed in the two sectors have been forgotten.

The South Gujarat Chamber of Commerce and Industry is unhappy with the budget, said its president Arvind Kapadia.

“We had great expectations from the finance minister. But there is no provision for the diamond and textile sectors. The minister should realise that these industries are the main contributors to the country’s economy,” he said.

In the last budget, the FM had assured that 20 apparel parks will be set up in the country, but only two have been set up so far. In this budget, he has disclosed that 30 apparel parks will be set up. “All his announcements remain on paper,” he added.

Iterating Kapadia’s misgivings, Arun Jariwala, textile businessman and former president of SGCCI, said in last year’s budget, Rs 911 crore was earmarked for the Textile Upgradation Scheme.

“We were expecting the duty on cotton will be reduced from 8 per cent to 4 per cent. Yarns are becoming expensive. Many textile processing units are sick and some even remain shut for two-three days a week,” he added. Rohit Mehta, Group Chairman (SGCCI) and diamond businessman said over a crore people are directly or indirectly associated with the diamond industry in India. But there is no exemption for gem and jewellery in this budget.

The import duty on American Diamonds and coloured stones has been lowered to 5 per cent from 10 per cent, which will only help the imitation jewellery market grow.