Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday said the interim budget will strengthen the four pillars of developed India, namely the youth, the poor, women and farmers.
He listed some proposals for the middle class, such as solarization of roofs and ‘income tax remission’, under which the government will withdraw old disputed direct tax demands.
In a televised address in the afternoon, the Prime Minister said the Budget aimed to keep the fiscal deficit under control and envisaged a historic increase in total capital expenditure to Rs 11.11 trillion.
“In economists’ terms, these two are the sweet spots of the budget,” Modi said.
Terming the document as ‘Nirmala ji’s Budget’, the Prime Minister said it provided the ‘guarantee’ for strengthening the foundation for building a developed India by 2047 and entailed ‘confidence in continuity’.
He stated that the Budget was inclusive, innovative and honored the vibrant aspirations of a young India.
The Prime Minister said the budget was “not just an interim budget, but an inclusive and innovative budget”. Two budget proposals – a corpus of Rs 1 trillion for research and innovation and rebates for start-ups – will create innumerable employment opportunities for India’s youth. It will also lead to the creation of modern infrastructure.
The Budget, the Prime Minister said, has reached out to the poor and middle class as there will be 40,000 high-quality Vande Bharat train coaches and 20 million additional houses for the urban and rural poor.
In this context, Modi said the government sets big goals, achieves them and then sets even bigger goals for itself.
He added that the Center had constructed 40 million houses under Prime Minister Awas Yojana in the last ten years.
The Prime Minister said the income tax waiver scheme will provide relief to 10 million people belonging to the middle class. He accused previous governments of using these pending tax cases as a sword hanging over the heads of the country’s ordinary citizens.
He spoke about the rooftop solar campaign, Prime Minister Suryodaya Yojana, where 10 million families could avail free electricity.
Further, they could earn Rs 15,000-18,000 annually by selling surplus electricity to the government.
The Prime Minister listed out the budget’s pro-women schemes and included Aanganwadi and ASHA workers under the Ayushman Bharat health insurance scheme.
“Our target was to earn 20 million ‘lakhpatis’ among women. This target has been increased to 30 lakhpatis,” he said.
The Prime Minister said the Budget has taken several measures for the welfare of farmers, including the proposed expansion of Prime Minister Matsya Sampada Yojana to boost the fisheries sector.
There is also the ‘Atmanirbhar’ oilseed campaign to make India self-reliant in edible oils by increasing domestic production of oilseeds and launching a comprehensive program to support dairy farmers.
He also said that the application of nano-liquid DAP (diammonium phosphate), an important fertilizer, will be extended to all agro-climatic zones.
First print: February 1, 2024 | 9:50 PM IST