A good attempt by the goverment to address the problems of the industry. Increasing import duty will create a level playing field for domestic industry. Continuity in reforms is welcome.

K Mahesh, ACMA

A disappointment. Nothing to kickstart the economy. Eight per cent import duty will increase inflation. Duty on tractors, multi-utility vehicles is ill-timed. The good thing was that the import duty on engines and engine components was increased to 30 per cent from 20 per cent.

M A Alagappan, Murugappa Group

Not very inspiring. There were some good measures like opening the insurance sector to private players, allowing provident fund investment in infrastructure and balancing the fertiliser prices by increasing urea prices thereby bringing down subsidy on phosphatic fertilisers.

Venu Srinivasan, TVS Suzuki

Good budget. Far-reaching measures like divestment in PSUs upto 26 per cent while protecting the interest of workers by extending VRSbenefit instead retrenchment. The increase in the petrol prices is unhealthy as it enhances the differential between petrol and diesel prices. But I suspect that the Modvat policy which was innocuously announced could have a big impact.

Suresh Krishna, Sundaram Fasteners

Very positive. Lends stability and promotes infrastructure. The exit policy proves the government's goal of exiting from the industrial sector. The eight per cent increase in import duty was a corrective measure. The service tax on transport which was the biggest dampener has been removed.

N Srinivasan, India Cements

Though the budget signals continuation of reforms and gives fillip to infrastructure spending, questions still remain as to whether these measures would kick-start the economy. Nothing has been done to revive the capital market except for "videshis" at a time when the "swadeshi" investors were hoping for introduction of buyback of shares.

S Ramasubramanian, president, MSE

Capital market is clearlydisappointed with the budget. All that the market expected was buy-back of shares, capital gains on par with FIIs and allowing of pension funds and provident funds to invest in capital market - which were not met. The market will not crash but the growth would be very slow.

Deepak Banker, FICCI ex-president

Fantastic on paper. Allowing NRIs to hold up to 10 per cent of a company's equity would pose a serious threat of takeover. In the guise of level playing field an import duty of eight per cent has been slapped across the board but the inequality in the duty structure remains.

G K Raman, MD, Sundaram Fin

Opening up of insurance to Indian companies welcome. FIIs should be allowed minority stake as their presence is required for technological upgradation and product development.

G Vijayaraghavan, Executive VP, Ind Global Fin

Industry friendly budget. Rightly ignored sanctions. Opening up of the coal, lignite and petro products sector could see lot of foreign investments.Limiting of modvat to five per cent should affect the profitability of the companies. Fiscal deficit could end up much more than 5.6 per cent and as a result push up inflationary pressures.