New Delhi, Feb. 1 -- India's middle class has reason to rejoice. Finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman has eased income tax burdens under the new regime across the board. The threshold level for zero income tax, for instance, has been bumped up to Rs.12 lakh annually from Rs.7 lakh. That's quite a leap.

Those with higher income will also see their tax liability go down considerably, thanks to tax slabs having been both raised and spaced apart. Annual income above Rs.24 lakh puts one into the 30% bracket now, up from Rs.15 lakh. As an example, Sitharaman said that an individual with income of Rs.25 lakh would now be left with Rs.1.1 lakh extra in hand.

The budget also proposed easing tax deduction at source (TDS) and tax collection at sour...