Growth Oriented, Employment Creating, All Inclusive Budget: PHDCCI
The focus on GYAN (Gareeb, Yuva, Annadata and Narishakti) will all inclusive development and strengthen India’s journey towards Viksit Bharat.
Shri Sanjeev Agrawal, President, PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry congratulates Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman, Honourable Finance Minister on presenting a strong Union Budget 2024-25.
We appreciate that the economy is on a strong wicket and stable footing towards its journey to Viksit Bharat, said Shri Sanjeev Agrawal.
The nine priority areas of productivity and resilience in agriculture, employment and skilling, inclusive human resource development and social justice, manufacturing & services, urban development, energy security, infrastructure, innovation and R&D and next generation reforms will strengthen the growth and all inclusive development of the country, said Shri Sanjeev Agrawal.
Support to MSMEs with the announcement of credit guarantee schemes in manufacturing to facilitate term loans for MSMEs, with a guarantee fund of up to Rs 100 crore, will enhance the business activity and employment creation in the country, said Shri Sanjeev Agrawal.
We appreciate that India’s economic growth continues to be the shining exception and will remain so in the years ahead, despite global uncertainties, said Shri Sanjeev Agrawal.
We are happy to note Budget’s focus on employment, skilling, MSMEs and middle class with the announcement of Rs 2 lakh crore for five key schemes over the period of five years, said Shri Sanjeev Agrawal.
Government’s continued focus on infrastructure development is encouraging. The announcement of Rs 26,000 crore to boost road connectivity projects will reduce the time and transportation costs and support trade and industry, said Shri Sanjeev Agrawal
The Budget allocation to capital expenditure of Rs 11.11 lakh crore, which is 3.4% of India’s GDP, will be the strong fiscal support for state of the art infrastructure development, said Shri Sanjeev Agrawal.
Government’s announcement to enhance the limit of MUDRA loans to Rs 20 lakh from the current Rs 10 lakh for those who have availed and successfully repaid loans under the TARUN category, will support the inclusive development of the country, said Shri Sanjeev Agrawal.
The allocation of Rs 1.52 lakh crore to the agriculture sector, will ehnace farmer incomes and benefit rural demand for automobiles, said Shri Sanjeev Agrawal.
Comprehensive review of the agricultural research setup to increase productivity and develop climate-resilient varieties with domain experts, will boost agriculture productivity and strengthen agri exports, said Shri Sanjeev Agrawal.
The PM’s package and a direct benefit transfer (DBT) of one month’s salary, up to Rs 15,000, will bolster employment opportunities for the growing young population, said Shri Sanjeev Agrawal.
The Budget announcement of “critical mineral mission” for the recycling of critical minerals and their overseas acquisitions is highly appreciable as this will strengthen the energy intensive sectors and promote sustainability, said Shri Sanjeev Agrawal.
The proposed revision of “Model Skill Loan Scheme” to help 25,000 students every year by utilizing E-vouchers for loans upto Rs. 10 lakh for higher education in domestic institutions, will support skilling of youth and enhance their employability, said Shri Sanjeev Agrawal.
The government has given thrust to overall inclusive development of the country by announcing Rs 2.66 lakh crore for rural development, sanctioning of 12 industrial parks and Rs 2.2 lakh crore push to make housing more affordable, said Shri Sanjeev Agrawal.
The government has proposed to set up a venture capital fund of ₹1000 crore for the space economy, this will strengthen India’s global stance in the space sector, said Shri Sanjeev Agrawal.
Simplification of rules and recognition for Foreign Direct Investments (FDIs) will boost FDI inflows and prioritize and promote the use of the Rupee for overseas investments. This will enhance India’s attractiveness to foreign investors, said Shri Sanjeev Agrawal.
It is inspiring to note that the fiscal deficit is estimated at 4.9% of GDP for 2024-25, and the government aims to reduce it to 4.5 percent of GDP, keeping on the path of fiscal consolidation, said Shri Sanjeev Agrawal.
The Budget announcements of rationalization of the tax structure, especially GST has significantly reduced tax incidents for the common man and eased compliance for industry, said Shri Sanjeev Agrawal.
Duty reductions on mobiles and accessories to 15% and reduction in customs duty on gold and silver to 6% and on platinum to 6.4%, will provide a positive push to these sectors, said Shri Sanjeev Agrawal.
The Budget announcements on the Tax regime are highly motivating for the middle class, which will boost demand in the economy, including standard deduction for salaried employees increased to Rs 75,000 in the new regime and two tax exemption regimes for charities merged into one, said Shri Sanjeev Agrawal.
Budget has come with motivating stance for the tax system. Tax rate of 12.5% on long-term capital gains on all financial and non-financial assets, the limit of exemption for capital gains set at Rs 1.25 lakh per year; and abolishing of angel tax will boost the industry, said Shri Sanjeev Agrawal.
The TDS regime has been strengthened by Budget announcements including 5% TDS rate on payments merged into 2% TDS rate, 20% TDS rate on repurchase of units by mutual funds or UTI withdrawn and TDS rate on e-commerce operators reduced from 1% to 0.1%, said Shri Sanjeev Agrawal.