NOTES 67 that, through various measures like income-tax concessions, excise-duty reductions and investment allowances. Once again the public sector will act as an active partner through investment in basic industries like coal, iron and steel, fertilizers and oil: the budget provides precisely these industries with adequate investible resources. With respect to agriculture the country has been in the grip of a severe food crisis for the last four years with prices of foodgrains rising very sharply, though since the latter part of 1975, the situation has eased somewhat and prices have shown a downward movement. This is due partly to the good monsoon this year and to imports of foodgrains. But the agricultural strategy launched in 1965-66 concentrated on providing subsidized new inputs like seeds and fertilizers primarily to the top 10-15 per cent, landlords and rich peasantry. Given the agrarian class structure, the ability to invest in the new techniques is confined to the top strata. By contrast the mass of the peasantry lack the capacity to invest; a large number of district level studies confirm that the ^Green Revolution" has led to increasing concentration of incomes in agriculture. While this strategy has no doubt resulted in an increase in output of wheat and certain other crops in regions like Punjab, Haryana, and western Uttar Pradesh, the overall growth rate of agricultural output during the sixties has not been higher as compared to the fifties. But there appears to be no change in this strategy. This yearns budget provides for a large step-up in outlay on inputs like fertilizers; substantial central government assistance will be given to state plans which lay emphasis on irrigation and power. The Finance Minister stated that "progress in agriculture depends crucially on the supply of inputs such as quality seeds, water, power and fertilizers." It is true that agriculture needs even more resources but without changing the agrarian class structure, it is certain that only the big farmers and landlords will be able to take advantage of these facilities. Fiscal Concessions The budget this year contains a number of concessions in income tax and wealth tax, reductions in excise duty on certain durable consumer goods, investment allowance for priority units, and other reliefs. The maximum marginal rate of income tax including surcharge which applied to income ranges beyond Rs 70,000 per annum used to be 97.75 per cent. Adding wealth tax to it the rate beyond a certain level of income exceeded 100 per cent. In the 1974-75 budget the maximum marginal rate was reduced to 77 per cent. The present budget reduces it further to 66 with wealth tax so adjusted that both together may not exceed 100 per cent. On the other hand, the relief offered to the lower income groups is very meagre. This can be seen from the existing and proposed rates applicable to the different income slabs. For instance in the income slab Rs 8,001-15,000 the reduction in the existing rate is only 2 per cent, while in the income slabs above Rs 25,000 it is 10 and beyond Rs 70,000, reduction in income tax rate is 15 per cent.