SUCCESSFUL SEVENTH CENTRAL GOVERNMENT BUDGET – 2024 OF NIRMALA SITHARAMAN
In fact,
almost all ministers and their portfolios are identical to that of Modi 2.0
Government which goes to indicate that Modi 2.0 Government is an extended
government for the next five years and this indicates that Modi’s Goal of
Making Bharat Fully Developed and Self Sufficient by 2047 has not undergone
even a bit change or deviation in major policy matters.
Modi
3.0 first budget of 2024 presented by
Ms. Sitharaman – Modi’s most trusted Finance Minister and her seventh one in
succession aims to a well-rounded strategy to improve the overall quality of
life for all citizens.
This budget is aimed at fixing the woes of unemployed youth, small businesses, and the middle class apart from financial support for multiple investments in Bihar and Andhra Pradesh.
Hence the budget focuses on EMPLOYMENT,
SKILLING, MSMEs, and the MIDDLE CLASS.
To
squarely meet the challenges posed by the unemployment and to create jobs for
the youth, the budget has a package of 5 schemes and initiatives for 4.1 crore
youth over a 5-year period.
Scheme A – First Timers: One-month salary
of up to `15,000 to be provided in 3 instalments to first-time employees, as
registered in the EPFO.
Scheme B – Job Creation in manufacturing: Incentive to be provided at specified scale directly, both employee and
employer, with respect to their EPFO contribution in the first 4 years of
employment.
Scheme C – Support to employers: Government
to reimburse up to `3,000 per month for 2 years towards EPFO contribution of
employers, for each additional employee.
New centrally sponsored scheme for Skilling- 20 lakh youth to be skilled over a 5-year period and 1,000 Industrial
Training Institutes to be upgraded in hub and spoke arrangements.
New Scheme for Internship in 500 Top Companies to 1 crore youth in 5 years
Due to
various welfare measures taken by Modi Government for the past 10 years, 25
crore individuals were lifted from poverty through Garib Kalyan, Desh Ka Kalyan
Initiatives.
Apart from
this laudable achievement, corruption at various levels were curbed through DBT
– Direct Benefit Transfer Scheme apart from savings of ₹2.7 lac crore.
Another
feature was provision of credit assistance extended to 78 lacs street vendors
under PM -SVANidhi Scheme.
For Women
Empowerment, more than 3 lac crore for schemes benefitting women and girls were
floated.
The budget provided Socio-economic development of tribal families in tribal majority villages and aspirational districts covering 63,000 villages benefitting 5 crore tribal people. MGNREGS – a flagship programme for rural India – got ₹86,000 crore for the next one year.
Other highlights are listed hereunder:
v For Agriculture, ₹1.52 lac crore for
farming and allied sectors to enhance productivity and resilience.
v For Urban housing, investment of 10
lacs crore including central assistance of 2.2 lac crore in next 5 years to
meet the housing needs of 1 crore urban poor and middle-class families.
v Provision of 1.5 lac crore for long
term interest free loans to support states in infrastructure investment.
v Venture capital fund of 1000 crore to
be set up for expanding the space economy by 5 times in the next 10 years.
v Comprehensive development of Vishnupad
Temple corridor, Mahabodhi Temple corridor and Rajgir.
v Assistance for development of temples, monuments, craftsmanship, wildlife santuaries, natural landscapes and pristine beaches in Odhisha.
Last but
not the least, Angel Tax for all classes of investors abolished thereby to
boost start-up eco-system.
For Tax
Payers, this budget has extended the following benefits:
1.
Standard deduction for salaried employees increased from
₹50,000 to
₹75,000.
2.
Deduction on family pension for pensioners enhanced from ₹15,000 to ₹25,000.
The target to reduce the fiscal deficit to below 4.5%
of the GDP in 2025 is laudable.
Some views
of Industrialists:
1. Simplifying rules and recognition for FDIs aims to facilitate inflow and promote the use of the Rupee for overseas investments. Numerous reforms in tax law operations are introduced to simplify the process for tax payers and rationalise tax rate, ensuring the system remains straightforward and inflation is controlled. The budget ensures balanced and inclusive development, steering India towards a future of economic resilience and equitable growth.
2.
Spending on infrastructure has doubled in the past three years from 1.7% of GDP
to 3.4% now – the Budget allocation being more than ₹11 lac crore towards
capital expenditure. This Budget is all set to target $5 trillion GDP by end of
this decade to transform Bharat into a developed economy by 2047 with the
active involvement and participation of private sectors.
3. Budget
2024 gives a vision for how India can continue to accelerate on its growth
journey.
4. Being a
progressive and inclusive vision budget, it allocates ₹1,48,000 crore for
education, skilling and job which underscores the government ‘s commitment to
this sector.
The Hindu
in its editorial had observed: The Budget sought to be many things to many
people, but fiscal responsibility remained in focus. .... All told, Ms. Sitharaman seems to have
balanced the political and fiscal compulsions to some extent.
In Short, Modi’s observations about the
budget, “Budget will help empower all sections of society” are quite true.
E-Touch hails the Budget as Education, Employment, Empowerment and Entrepreneurship Oriented.
E-Touch presents a bouquet for Ms.Sitharaman
for presenting budget for the seventh time under the Prime Ministership of
Modi.
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