Provisions have been made in the budget to make the agriculture sector production oriented, accelerate employment generation, strengthen the construction and manufacturing sector, strengthen the service sector, ensure rural and urban development, increase energy capacity, strengthen infrastructure, focus on innovation and research etc.

This is also necessary, because at present India is performing better than many major countries of the world on the development front. For example, the Economic Survey has estimated the gross domestic product (GDP) growth rate to be 6.5 to 7.0 percent in the financial year 2024-25, whereas the GDP growth rate in 2023-24 was 8.2 percent.

In the US, the growth rate in the financial year 2024-25 has been estimated to be 2.5 percent, whereas the growth rate there was 2.2 percent in the financial year 2023-24. At the same time, the growth rate in the Euro Zone is estimated to be 0.4 percent in the financial year 2024-25, while the growth rate there was 1 percent in the financial year 2023-24. The growth rate in Britain is estimated to be 0.3 percent during the financial year 2024-25, while the growth rate there was 0.8 percent in the financial year 2023-24. However, the growth rate in China is estimated to be 5.2 percent in the financial year 2024-25, while the growth rate there was 4.5 percent in the financial year 2023-24.

At present, the largest number of income tax payers are salaried class. Therefore, to encourage them, income up to Rs 7.75 lakh will be exempted from income tax for those who opt for the new tax regime, which will benefit the salaried people by Rs.17.5 thousand. To provide more benefits to the employees availing the NPS scheme, the deduction limit on employer’s contribution has been increased from 10 percent to 14 percent. Now, when employees earning less than Rs 1 lakh will register themselves for the first time in the Employees’ Provident Fund organisation, they will be given financial assistance of Rs.15.00 thousand in three instalments. For 30 lakh youth getting new employment, the government will contribute 1 month’s provident fund, so that they are encouraged to contribute. The government has said in the budget that the tax deduction on family pension for pensioners will be increased from Rs.15,000/- to Rs.25,000/-. This can be called a very important initiative, because a person needs money the most in old age.

It is very important to accelerate capital expenditure to accelerate economic activities. From the Corona period till now, the government is doing this important work with intensity. Therefore, a provision of Rs.11.11 lakh crore has been made in the budget to increase capital expenditure. In this sequence, the government has made a provision of Rs.2.66 lakh crore to ensure rural development.

The details of 6 crore farmers will be recorded in the land registry, which will make it easier for them to take advantage of government schemes. The budget also talks about issuing new Kisan Credit Cards in 5 states. Kisan Credit Card has helped millions of farmers to become self-reliant. Therefore, it is believed that this initiative of the government will benefit lakhs of farmers. According to the budget provisions, 1 crore farmers will be encouraged to do farming in a natural way, which is so that more production can be done at a lower cost. According to the budget provisions, clusters of vegetables will be promoted to increase their production.

Students taking loan for higher education will be given a loan of Rs.10 lakh to pursue education in domestic educational institutions. A provision of Rs.1.48 lakh crore has been made in the budget for education, employment and skill development. In the budget, employment will be provided to 4.1 crore youth in 5 years at a cost of Rs.2.00 lakh crore.

The limit of Mudra loan for youth has been increased from Rs.10.00 lakh to         Rs.20.00 lakh. This will help them to do business on a larger scale. Also, they will be able to give employment to others. The budget also talks about giving internships to 5 crore youth in 500 top companies, under which the intern will be given a monthly allowance of Rs.5,000. With this provision, the youth will be able to become skilled and it will be easy for them to get employment. Provisions have been made in the budget to make 20 lakh youth skilled in 5 years and in this sequence, under the Adarsh ​​Kaushal Loan Scheme, youth will be given a loan of Rs.7.5 lakh. 3 loan guarantee schemes will be introduced for MSMEs in the manufacturing sector, so that MSME business may increase significantly & maximum number of entrepreneurs can get employment.

Under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana Urban 2.0, Rs.10.00 lakh crore will be invested to provide housing to 1 crore families. To ensure that more and more people in the city have their own house, loans will be provided to the common people at affordable rates and they will also be given subsidies. An initiative has also been taken in the budget to build industrial parks in 100 cities, so that industry and business get a boost.

A provision of Rs.3.00 lakh crore has been made in the budget for schemes benefiting women. Also, under the Surya Ghar Free Electricity Scheme, a provision has been made to provide free electricity up to 300 units every month to 1 crore houses. These provisions will benefit women and deprived and lower middle-class families.

Banks are called the backbone of the economy. Therefore, it is important for banks to remain strong for the economy to be strong. Therefore, the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLT) was launched on 1 June 2016. So far, Rs.3.30 lakh crore has been recovered through it. Therefore, the government has been made provisions about making it even stronger in the budget.

It is clear from the budget provisions that the government has taken the initiative to strengthen all the necessary measures to ensure inclusive development such as infrastructure, agriculture, education, employment, banking, energy sector etc. Along with this, provisions have also been made in the budget for the betterment of the lower and middle class and the deprived sections.

Satish Singh, Ahmedabad based Senior Columnist. Views are Personal