New Delhi: The Union budget is set to become simpler and transparent with the government moving on to a single rate 16 per cent excise duty and only two rates of 10 and 20 per cent customs duty in two years.

With all items attracting single rate 16 per cent Cenvat and imports of raw materials attracting 10 per cent and finished goods 20 per cent, the 'Part-B' of the Budget, which lists out tax proposals, would become a one-page document, the Finance Minister Yashwant Sinha said at a meeting hosted by the Confederation of Indian Industries (CII).

"We will have a transparent Budget with the Part-B constituting only one paragraph or only a one-page document," he said.

Sinha said a detailed exercise would be carried out in the next budget to push up excise rates of items enjoying full exemptions and those at the 8 per cent slab to the Cenvat rate of 16 per cent.

Likewise, government would also try to constrict the number of items, which are at the 32 per cent slab, and bring it down to 16 per cent.

Sinha also said the customs duty on all raw material imports would be brought down to 10 per cent in 2004-05 while reducing the import tariff for finished goods to 20 per cent.

The minister wants the industry to come up with suggestions on how to integrate the rates.

He also favoured doing away with direct tax exemptions, saying the rates were "reasonable".

CII president Sanjiv Goenka said there had been a lot of speculations and forecasts about the Budget. CII termed the Budget as positive and achievable leading to a 6.0 per cent growth, he added.

PTI