Kolkata, Feb 1 (IANS): The revision in income tax rates will increase the purchasing power of the middle class sections of the society and thus, push the economic growth of the country in the long run, Kolkata-headquartered Bandhan Bank's founder, Managing Director and Chief Executive Chandra Sekhar Ghosh said.

According to him, the increase in the purchasing capability of the middle class will push the demands of the products and this will positively impact the economy of the nation.

"Of course there is an expression of shooting up of the inflation slightly because of this increase in the purchasing capacity of the middle class. However, considering the multiple positive aspects of the tax rate revision, in my opinion, that threat will not impact the economy in a major way," Ghosh said.

He also said that the income tax exemption will also indirectly help the banking sector on the deposits side. "Excess money in hand will prompt people to go for additional savings and this will improve the deposit side of the banks which is in a difficult shape now," the Bandhan Bank MD & CEO said.

He was especially enthusiastic about the new "Mahila Samman Saving Certificate", that will allow women a maximum deposit of up to Rs 2,00,000 having a maximum interest of 7.5 per cent for two years till March 2025. "This will definitely drive women towards savings and in my opinion this scheme is extremely innovative," he said.

He also pointed out that Fiance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, in her budget speech, stressed on infrastructure development as well as development of the MSME and start-up sectors. "This is a positive step towards employment generation, since whenever there is infrastructure development there is opportunity for employment generation. Similarly, MSME and start-up sectors generate employment and these two sectors have been addressed well in the budget speech," Ghosh added.