Key Highlights of the Interim Budget 2024

01 February, 2024

Synopsis

• The empowerment of the poor, the youth, the farmers and women can drive the country forward.
  
  
• There is macro-economic stability and investments are robust.
  
  
• The goal is to make India a ‘Viksit Bharat’ by 2047.
  
  

The Finance Minister, Nirmala Sitharaman, presented the Interim Union Budget 2024-2025. The full budget for the upcoming Financial Year will be presented after the formation of the new government, following the 2024 elections.

Here are the key budget highlights for the upcoming year.

Budget Estimates

• The fiscal deficit in 2024-25 is estimated to be 5.1% of GDP. The Finance Minister also reiterated her target of bringing it down to 4.5% by 2025-26.
  
  
• The 50-year interest-free Loan scheme for capital expenditure to states will continue this year with a total outlay of 1.3 lakh crore.
  
  
• The tax receipts are estimated at ₹26.02 lakh crore.
  
  

Tax Reforms & Proposals

• The Finance Minister proposed to retain the previous year’s tax regime.
  
  
• The expiry date for certain tax benefits for start-ups and investments to be extended from 31st March 2024 to 31st March 2025.
  
  
• One of the major 2024 Budget announcements included the withdrawal of outstanding direct tax demand: up to ₹25,000 for up to FY2009-10 and up to ₹10,000 for FY2010-11 to FY2011-15.
  
  
• A new Form 26AS and prefilling of tax returns have made filing of tax returns simpler and easier.
  
  
• This year, the tax base of GST more than doubled and the average monthly gross GST collection has almost doubled to ₹1.66 lakh crore.
  
  

Infrastructure Development

Considering that the capital expenditure outlay has tripled in the past four years, the outlay for the next year is being increased by 11.1% to ₹11,11,111 crore, which is 3.4% of the GDP.

Foreign Investments

The Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) flow during 2014-23 was record-breaking at USD 596 billion. In the spirit of ‘first develop India’, the government is negotiating bilateral investment treaties with foreign partners.

Electric Vehicles

The government will expand and strengthen the e-vehicle ecosystem by supporting manufacturing and charging infrastructure and encouraging the adoption of e-buses for public transport through payment security mechanisms.

MSME

• The government will prioritise timely and adequate finances, relevant technologies and appropriate training for the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) to grow and compete globally.
  
  
• PM Mudra Yojana has sanctioned 43 crore loans aggregating to ₹22.5 lakh crore for the entrepreneurial aspirations of the youth.
  
  

GIFT IFSC

GIFT International Financial Services Centre and the International Financial Services Centre Authority (IFSCA) are creating a robust gateway for capital and financial services.

Provisions for State Governments

To realise the vision of ‘Viksit Bharat’, the centre has proposed a provision of ₹75,000 crore as a 50-year interest-free loan to support milestone-linked reforms by the State Governments. Also, the centre will provide long-term interest-free loans to States to finance the comprehensive development of iconic tourist centres and branding and marketing them at a global scale.

Housing

Under the PM Awas Yojana Grameen (PMAY-G), the government is close to achieving the target of providing three crore houses. Two crore additional houses will be taken up in the next five years.

The DBT Benefit

The government has provided a Direct Benefit Transfer of ₹34 lakh crore through PM-Jan Dhan accounts which has led to a savings of ₹2.7 lakh crore for the government.

Other Budget Highlights

• The government will establish a corpus of ₹1 lakh crore with a 50-year interest-free Loan to encourage private sectors to scale up research and innovation in sunrise domains.
  
  
• Under PM Gati Shakti, three major railway corridor programmes will be implemented.
  
  
• The target for Lakhpati Didi will be increased from 2 crore to 3 crore.
  
  
• Projects for port connectivity, tourism infrastructure and amenities will be taken up on our islands.
  
  
• To achieve ‘Net Zero’ by 2070, coal gasification and liquefaction capacity shall be set up by 2030. The centre will provide financial assistance for the procurement of biomass aggregation machinery.
  
  
• Through Rooftop Solarisation, 1 crore households will be able to access 300 units of free electricity every month, saving up to ₹15,000 to ₹18,000 annually.
  
  
• The government will encourage cervical cancer vaccination for girls aged from 9 to 14 years.
  
  
• Health cover under Ayushman Bharat will be extended to all ASHA, Anganwadi workers and helpers.
  
  
• The government will set up five integrated aquaparks.

Learn about the four components of the Union Budget here.

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