Budget, a roadmap for making India ‘Viksit Bharat’, says ASSOCHAM

Team L&M

Describing the interim Union Budget for 2024-25 as inclusive and catalyst for investment , ASSOCHAM today said assertion by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman to present a roadmap for making India Viksit Bharat shows determination on the part of the government to take the country into the big league of the developed countries.

“It is an India first budget. A confident budget of a confident government that focuses on the objective of ensuring that India becomes a 5 trillion-dollar economy by 2025 and a developed nation by 2047. I commend the FM for her unwavering commitment to sabka saath, sabka vikas, sabka vishwas. I commend especially the increase in infrastructure spending that will have a multiplier effect on our economy. I commend the evident railway corridors, and the one lakh crore fund for research and development and the startup sector. The emphasis on clean energy, technology and digital infrastructure will make India a world leader. This is India’s moment, and this budget is part of a continuous process of making policy that will provide massive opportunities for India and Indians”, says ASSOCHAM president Ajay Singh,.

“Given the fact that it is an interim Budget ahead of the Lok Sabha elections, leaving tax rates unchanged is quite understandable, but the intentions are quite clear in terms of focus on youth, women, skill development. Statement on dealing with the challenge of population growth is quite brave and is in alignment with the national objective of making India a developed nation, ” says ASSOCHAM Secretary General Deepak Sood, adding that Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s determination to make India a developed nation is quite evident in the Budget.

The ASSOCHAM further said resilience of the Indian economy in the face of severe global headwinds is reflected in the fact that the government has not only managed to slightly lower the fiscal deficit at 5.8 per cent of the GDP for the current fiscal from 5.9 per cent in the Budget for 2023-24, it has been pegged much lower at 5.1 per cent of GDP for FY’25. ”This comes on the back of prudent expenditure management as also buoyancy in tax receipts leveraging the inherent strength of the economy”.

”Quality of expenditure stands out as a unique feature of the Budget. Capital expenditure of Rs 11.11 lakh crore provided for FY ’25 with an increase of nearly 17 per cent over the revised estimates of the previous fiscal, is a testimony of the government’s determination to invest heavily in infrastructure build-up. Such an approach is paying dividends for sustaining economic growth,” said ASSOCHAM.

The Budget focuses on promotion of renewable energy with incentives to rope in entrepreneurship in EV infrastructure. This would go a long way in making India a leader in clean energy, fuelling the economic growth. The MSME sector has been well identified as an engine of growth and employment generation with promises of helping hand in the Budget.

Withdrawal of personal tax demands up to Rs 25,000 for certain periods is surely a confidence building measure for the common people; it should even be extended to MSMEs as well, the ASSOCHAM said.