Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman presented the Interim Budget 2024 in Parliament, with a focus on the youth, farmers, women, and the poor. This was the interim budget before the Lok Sabha elections, and due to tradition, no changes related to taxes were announced. The budget highlights included a housing scheme for the middle class, a focus on infrastructure development, and a commitment to reduce natural gas usage through coal gasification. The government also aims to set up more medical colleges and provide interest-free loans for development in states. The fiscal deficit is estimated to be 5.8 percent in the current financial year, with a target to bring it to 5.1 percent in the next financial year. The government also announced a special housing scheme for the middle class and a plan to build three crore houses under the Rural Housing Scheme.
Other highlights include the government’s efforts to increase tourism in the country and provide interest-free loans for state development. The budget also addressed the provision of interest-free loans for state development, the reduction of natural gas through coal gasification, and a focus on infrastructure development. The Finance Minister also mentioned the government’s efforts to increase renewable energy sources, such as providing rooftop solar panels to ensure up to 300 units of free electricity per month to one crore households. The budget also included provisions for the development of the eastern region and its people, as well as increased funding for the infrastructure sector.
Under the Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri-Jan Arogya Yojana (AB-PMJAY), the government announced plans to and bring all Asha and Anganwadi workers under the ambit of health care. The budget also highlighted the PM-Kisan scheme, which provides financial assistance to farmers, as well as the 78 lakh street vendors who have benefited from PM-Swanidhi and PM Vishwakarma Yojana. The Finance Minister also announced that 25 crore people have been brought out of poverty in the country in the last 10 years.
Additionally, the government announced plans to provide funding for the project to make offshore wind energy capacity practical and the use of nano urea in various crops in agro-climatic zones. The budget also included a focus on structural reforms, pro-people programs, and employment opportunities to give new strength to the economy. In the last 10 years, 25 crore people have been freed from multidimensional poverty, and the government has given new meaning to GDP. The Finance Minister highlighted the government’s vision of bringing all eligible people within the ambit of social justice and active secularism. The significance of India in the global economy was also addressed, with the Indian economy becoming the world’s third-largest economy with a gross domestic product (GDP) of $5 trillion.
Other key points included the government’s focus on the development of the eastern region, and the Finance Minister also mentioned that the government’s approach to tackling poverty has yielded modest results. In the last 10 years, the government has given meaning to ‘Government, Development and Performance’ in GDP. The Finance Minister emphasized the need to focus on the poor, women, youth, and farmers, and highlighted India’s economic changes, including structural reforms and the aim to become a $7 trillion economy in the next six to seven years.