Indian Budget Analysis- 2024

Hello dear friends,

Welcome to discussions on Indian Budget 2024.

The the presentation of the 2024 Interim Budget by Union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman. As the nation eagerly awaits insights into the government's economic priorities and financial strategies.

Please Share your views, expert comments, on this budget here.

Key Highlights

https://indianexpress.com/article/business/budget/budget-2024-key-highlights-nirmala-sitharaman-speech-9138187/

Key Highlights.

https://www.livemint.com/economy/budget-2024-key-highlights-from-income-tax-to-green-energy-and-tourism-lets-take-a-look-at-the-14-key-points-11706765681802.html

Reactions:

https://www.livemint.com/industry/budget-2024-corporate-reactions-live-updates-green-energy-msme-ev-it-sector-auto-real-estate-nirmala-sitharaman-11706693679767.html

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I wanted to share my thoughts and verdict on the Indian budget that was announced today by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman.

This is her sixth consecutive budget presentation, and it was an interim one, as the Lok Sabha elections are due later this year.

The budget speech was quite long, and you can read the full document here: Budget Speech 2024 PDF

But if you don't have the time or patience to go through the whole thing, here are some of the highlights that caught my attention, along with my opinion on them:

• The economy has witnessed a positive transformation in the last 10 years, and is expected to become the third-largest in the world in the next three years, with a GDP of $5 trillion . I think this is a commendable achievement, and shows the resilience and potential of our country. However, I also feel that there are still many challenges and gaps that need to be addressed, such as poverty, inequality, unemployment, and environmental issues.
  
  
• The government has increased the capital expenditure target to Rs 11.11 lakh crore, which is 21% higher than the previous year. This will boost infrastructure development and create more jobs . I think this is a good move, as it will stimulate the economy and improve the quality of life of many people. However, I also wonder how the government will finance this expenditure, and whether it will lead to higher fiscal deficit and debt.
  
  
• The government has proposed no change in direct and indirect tax rates, including import tax. This means no relief for taxpayers, but also no additional burden . I think this is a balanced decision, as it will maintain the stability and predictability of the tax system. However, I also feel that there could have been some relief for the lower and middle income groups, who have been hit hard by the pandemic and inflation.
  
  
• The government has extended the tax break for start-ups to March 31, 2025, and has also announced a fund of funds for start-ups with a corpus of Rs 10,000 crore . I think this is a great initiative, as it will encourage innovation and entrepreneurship in our country. However, I also hope that the government will ensure that the fund is disbursed efficiently and transparently, and that there is proper monitoring and evaluation of the start-ups.
  
  
• The government has announced interest-free loans to states to promote tourism, and has also allocated funds for the development of tourism in Lakshadweep . I think this is a welcome step, as it will boost one of the most important sectors of our economy. However, I also urge the government to ensure that tourism development is done in a sustainable and responsible manner, without harming the environment or the local culture.
  
  
• The government has announced several measures to empower women, such as increasing the maternity leave benefit from 26 weeks to 39 weeks, providing free sanitary napkins to all school girls, and launching a scheme to provide collateral-free loans to women entrepreneurs . I think this is a fantastic move, as it will enhance the welfare and dignity of women in our country. However, I also suggest that the government should also focus on other aspects of women empowerment, such as education, health, safety, and political representation

So these are some of the key points that I found interesting in the budget speech. Of course, there are many more details and nuances that I have not covered here. But I think this gives a fair overview of what the government has planned for the next financial year.

My verdict on the budget is that it is a balanced one, which tries to cater to different sections of society and different sectors of economy. It does not have any major surprises or shocks, but also does not have any major reforms or incentives. It seems to be a safe and cautious budget, which reflects the pre-election mood of the government assuming that they are going to come back in 2024 General Election.

Thanks for reading!

The interim budget has not announced any changes in the tax slabs .. so it’s a relief for salaried persons . .Since it’s before the general elections no one wants to burden the taxpayers . Something to cheer ..even if it’s for a short time .

I am no economist to analyse the budget or if it's looking promising or not, but I would like to know how govt will lower the fiscal deficit?? They can't reduce their spendings if they are aiming to increase infrastructure development by 11.1% in a year along with spending on other things they want to, so it leaves the income part for consideration, so where the source of income is lacking for govt? If they say the tax filing/collection has doubled over the period? Or the projects they launched are not that feasible? It would be hard to think that they are not profitable, cause even the smallest of infra project is tend to increase your income, we can't reduce our spending and revenue part is a long term process, so are they looking for alternatives to balance that is the part I am actually interested in, if they are aiming for public funding or what? One thing they need to look at is their contractors if they are at it, may be that will reduce over spending to an expense, let's see what they have in store for us.

Second thing is why the centre need to fund states to boost tourism, I understand the importance of it and would love to know the extent of their fundings, but would be more happy to see them find other alternatives to promote regional tourism, I know they are working on it can't wait to see the result of that.

The third part which I failed to understand is that if this is interim budget and we will have one more budget in July then couldn't they have focused more on short term kind of schemes, as we all know these are the long term schemes and would probably be taken forward in the July budget session but still, there are High chances that most of them won't even start before July so what's the use of this budget and the process at the moment? Couldn't they (MPs) have focused their time on other important issues? By extending the previous budget?

Overall I loved the govt's thought process and their hardwork to make India developed till 2047, and their stand on Trinity of, Democracy, demography and diversity that's actually an interesting part, we all know that Democracy often delays the development work due to many decision making authorities and demography always put constraints on our resources and it's use plus diversity makes it more difficult for them to work together, I hope they will be able to show the world, if utilised properly and good intentions, your vices can be your biggest strength.

Originally posted by: vijay

I wanted to share my thoughts and verdict on the Indian budget that was announced today by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman.

This is her sixth consecutive budget presentation, and it was an interim one, as the Lok Sabha elections are due later this year.

The budget speech was quite long, and you can read the full document here: Budget Speech 2024 PDF

But if you don't have the time or patience to go through the whole thing, here are some of the highlights that caught my attention, along with my opinion on them:

• The economy has witnessed a positive transformation in the last 10 years, and is expected to become the third-largest in the world in the next three years, with a GDP of $5 trillion . I think this is a commendable achievement, and shows the resilience and potential of our country. However, I also feel that there are still many challenges and gaps that need to be addressed, such as poverty, inequality, unemployment, and environmental issues.
  
  
• The government has increased the capital expenditure target to Rs 11.11 lakh crore, which is 21% higher than the previous year. This will boost infrastructure development and create more jobs . I think this is a good move, as it will stimulate the economy and improve the quality of life of many people. However, I also wonder how the government will finance this expenditure, and whether it will lead to higher fiscal deficit and debt.
  
  
• The government has proposed no change in direct and indirect tax rates, including import tax. This means no relief for taxpayers, but also no additional burden . I think this is a balanced decision, as it will maintain the stability and predictability of the tax system. However, I also feel that there could have been some relief for the lower and middle income groups, who have been hit hard by the pandemic and inflation.
  
  
• The government has extended the tax break for start-ups to March 31, 2025, and has also announced a fund of funds for start-ups with a corpus of Rs 10,000 crore . I think this is a great initiative, as it will encourage innovation and entrepreneurship in our country. However, I also hope that the government will ensure that the fund is disbursed efficiently and transparently, and that there is proper monitoring and evaluation of the start-ups.
  
  
• The government has announced interest-free loans to states to promote tourism, and has also allocated funds for the development of tourism in Lakshadweep . I think this is a welcome step, as it will boost one of the most important sectors of our economy. However, I also urge the government to ensure that tourism development is done in a sustainable and responsible manner, without harming the environment or the local culture.
  
  
• The government has announced several measures to empower women, such as increasing the maternity leave benefit from 26 weeks to 39 weeks, providing free sanitary napkins to all school girls, and launching a scheme to provide collateral-free loans to women entrepreneurs . I think this is a fantastic move, as it will enhance the welfare and dignity of women in our country. However, I also suggest that the government should also focus on other aspects of women empowerment, such as education, health, safety, and political representation

So these are some of the key points that I found interesting in the budget speech. Of course, there are many more details and nuances that I have not covered here. But I think this gives a fair overview of what the government has planned for the next financial year.

My verdict on the budget is that it is a balanced one, which tries to cater to different sections of society and different sectors of economy. It does not have any major surprises or shocks, but also does not have any major reforms or incentives. It seems to be a safe and cautious budget, which reflects the pre-election mood of the government assuming that they are going to come back in 2024 General Election.

Thanks for reading!

and one reason could be, we will have a full fledged budget in July.

Do you have any idea if some schemes of previous year's budget is being carry forward in this one or not?

Originally posted by: Sutapasima

The interim budget has not announced any changes in the tax slabs .. so it’s a relief for salaried persons . .Since it’s before the generals no one wants to burden the taxpayers . Something to cheer ..even if it’s for a short time .

But the article mentioned this part is a disappointment

Originally posted by: Moonks

and one reason could be, we will have a full fledged budget in July.

Do you have any idea if some schemes of previous year's budget is being carry forward in this one or not?

No idea on the schemes that are being carry forwarded except that they extended the Startup thing (which interests me)

Well atleast its better that they didn't announce any new populist schemes like loan waiver, which increases our budget deficit.

Originally posted by: vijay

No idea on the schemes that are being carry forwarded except that they extended the Startup thing (which interests me)

Well atleast its better that they didn't announce any new populist schemes like loan waiver, which increases our budget deficit.

They couldn't do this every time, especially when they are doing every effort to take banking to the remote areas, I think banking should be left to the RBI, Loan waiver is a very sensitive topic but I really don't agree with the part, they have taken the money, they used it and it's their duty to repay it back, we should look for different alternatives to reduce their burden instead of shifting it on those who haven't used that money by simply waiving it off