New Delhi [India], Feb 1: Finance Minister Arun Jaitley met President Ram Nath Kovind at Rashtrapati Bhavan before presenting the Union Budget 2018-19 in the Parliament. Union Budget papers arrive in Parliament. Finance Minister Arun Jaitley will be presenting the last full Budget of the Narendra Modi government before 2019 Lok Sabha elections. Jaitley has a politically tough task of keeping voters in good stead, on the one hand, going into the general elections and enforce fiscal discipline maintaining northward movement of GDP growth rate.

With GST taking out manipulation in indirect tax rates for most of the commodities, people's expectations are high in terms of welfare schemes, more relaxation in income tax front, railways and air fare, and policies giving firm push to agriculture and industry. Here is what is expected of Arun Jaitley when he lays down Modi government plan for the next fiscal.

For personal taxes, the expectations are that he would raise the basic exemption from Rs 2.5 lakh to Rs 3.5 lakh, as otherwise even one drawing a little more than the minimum wage of Rs 19,000 per month becomes a taxpayer. During his pre-budget consultations, he was also urged to increase the exempt limit on the medical expenses.