New Delhi. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has described the Union Budget 2024-25 as bringing better opportunities, new energy and bright future for every section of the society and said that this budget will act as a catalyst in the process of making India the third largest economic power in the world, laying a solid foundation for a developed India.
Praising the Union Budget for the financial year 2024-25 presented by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in the Lok Sabha today, Modi said, “I congratulate all the countrymen for this important budget that will take the country to new heights of development. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and her entire team deserve many congratulations.”
The Prime Minister said that this budget is going to empower every section of the society. This is a budget that will take the villages, poor and farmers of the country on the path of prosperity. In the last 10 years, 25 crore people have come out of poverty. This budget is a continuation of the empowerment of this new middle class. This is a budget that will give countless new opportunities to the youth.
He said that this budget will give new expansion to education and skills. This is a budget that will give new strength to the middle class. It has come with strong plans to empower tribal society, Dalits and backward classes. This budget will help in ensuring economic participation of women. This budget will give a new path of progress to small traders, micro, small, medium enterprises (MSMEs). There is a lot of focus on manufacturing and infrastructure in the budget. This will give new impetus to economic development.
The Prime Minister said, “Creating unprecedented opportunities for employment and self-employment has been the hallmark of our government. Today's budget further strengthens it. The country and the world have seen the success of the Productivity Linked Incentive Scheme. Now in this budget, the government has announced the Employment Linked Incentive Scheme. This will create crores of new jobs in the country. Under this scheme, our government will pay the first salary of the youth who get their first job in life. Whether it is help for skill development and higher education or a plan for internship for 1 crore youth, this will enable my young friends from villages and poor people, my sons and daughters, to work in the top companies of the country, new doors of possibilities will open for them.”
Modi said that we have to make every city, every village, every house an entrepreneur. For this purpose, the limit of Mudra loan without guarantee has been increased from Rs 10 lakh to Rs 20 lakh. This will give a boost to self-employment among small businessmen, especially women, Dalit, backward and tribal families. In this budget, a new scheme has been announced to increase easy loans for MSMEs. Important announcements have been made in the budget to take the manufacturing and export ecosystem to every district. This budget has brought a lot of new opportunities for our startups, innovation ecosystem. Be it a fund of Rs 1000 crore to promote space-based economy, decision to remove angel tax, many such steps have been taken in this budget.
The Prime Minister said that the record capital allocation will be the driving force for the economy. 12 new industrial areas, development of new satellite cities in the country and transit plans for 14 big cities will develop new economic hubs in the country and create a large number of new jobs. He said that today defence exports are at a record level. In this budget, many provisions have been made to make the defence sector self-reliant. Today the attraction towards India has increased all over the world. And new possibilities have been created in the field of tourism in India. The tourism sector brings many opportunities for the poor and the middle class. In this budget, special emphasis has also been given to the tourism sector.
He said that the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government has ensured in the last 10 years that the poor and the middle class continue to get relief from taxes. In this budget too, a big decision has been taken to reduce income tax and increase standard deduction. The rules of tax at source (TDS) have also been simplified. These steps will result in additional savings for every taxpayer.
Mr Modi said that a major focus of this budget is the farmers of the country. After the world's largest scheme for foodgrain storage, we are now going to create vegetable production clusters. This will provide small farmers new markets for vegetables, fruits and other produce and will get better prices. The availability of fruits and vegetables will increase for our middle class and nutrition for the family will also be ensured. It is the need of the hour for India to become self-reliant in the agricultural sector. Therefore, help has been announced for farmers to increase the production of pulses and oilseeds.
He said that major announcements have been made in today's budget to end poverty and empower the poor. It has been decided to build three crore new houses for the poor. Janjati Unnat Gram Abhiyan will connect five crore tribal families with basic facilities. Apart from this, under the Gram Sadak Yojana, 25 thousand new rural areas will be connected with all-weather roads.
He said that India's ascent to new heights of development is linked to the progress of eastern India. To ensure growth in this region, we are committed to building strong infrastructure, including modern highways and transformational water and power projects. By doing so, we will unleash the enormous potential of eastern India, leading to growth and prosperity across the country.
Modi said, “Today's budget has brought new opportunities, new energy. It has brought a lot of new jobs, self-employment opportunities. It has brought better progress and a bright future. This budget will act as a catalyst in the process of making India the third largest economic power in the world, it will lay a solid foundation for a developed India.”
