The Budget is Special: Finance Minister Sitharaman

Budget designed with the year 2047 in mind

This is the first budget for the second quarter of the century, and this period will include the goal of creating a developed India by 2047. Therefore, I have to prepare for more than 20 years in that direction.

I am moving forward with the recommendations of the new Finance Commission and need to plan for the next five years. This is the first in five years. The focus of this budget is to sustain stable growth.

Many global uncertainties still remain.

After the income tax and GST relief, I firmly believe that these measures will help people save and purchase more money. After that, the focus should be on economic progress. I didn’t want to leave any room, because no one knows what will happen globally, and many challenges still remain.

Private sector capital investment

We’ve made it easier by reducing corporate tax. Income tax slabs have also been streamlined. Therefore, I believe the industry needs to think about ways to participate in India’s economic progress.

To achieve the goal of a developed India we must sometimes move slow and sometimes fast

That’s why I said that this budget has a one-year agenda, which can be called a sprint, and a marathon towards a developed India. But there’s also a five-year timeframe between the two.

It’s a jugglery of words, but our plans for rural reforms, cities as economic zones, and waterways are both immediate and long-term. Skilling youth, increasing productivity in agriculture and industry through AI, and science and technology will all be a mix of these in the budget. First, you have to discover, then extract, then refine to create the things needed for solar energy, hydrogen, semiconductors, and robots.

But relying on other sources for raw materials has led us to a situation where even small decisions have adverse consequences.

The case of corruption

Corruption at the grassroots level hinders last-mile work; it cannot be ignored in the eagerness and effort to complete a project. As it was in MNREGA, it is also present in the Jal Jeevan Mission in some states. Such corruption can sabotage the very purpose of the project. You can lay pipes, but there is no water at the source from where it should come. In other words, when you see that people can misuse a well-intentioned project, you need to improve it.

Upgration of MSME’s

When I say that manufacturing must be made one of the pillars of sustainable growth, I’m not just talking about large industries. One aspect of the coin is PLI. Through it, we target industries that have a high labor demand and export potential. These include semiconductors, phone manufacturing, electronics, gems and jewelry, and textiles.

The other side is that 40 percent of our exports come from MSMEs. Medium-sized enterprises, despite their potential, are reluctant to grow because they fear losing MSME benefits. We’ve changed the criteria. We will provide support to them even while remaining in the MSME category.

Suggestions are welcomed

An open mind must be open to any new idea. That’s why we’re connecting with a lot of people, putting it on websites, and saying, “Give your suggestions.” Even if you send a message on WhatsApp, we’ll look at that.