Budget 2024: Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Thursday tabled the interim budget 2024. During her budget 2024 speech, the Finance Minister hailed the country for overcoming the challenges of Covid-19 and created foundations for self-reliant India.

Following the budget 2024 announcement, Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw, Executive Chairperson, Biocon and Biocon Biologics, said that the interim budget 2024 is an all-encompassing interim budget who many look up to as first-generation entrepreneur and global business leader.

“At the first glance, she finds the budget as one that comes across as one with no negatives really considering the various elements it tries to address. It comes across very focussed on a robust and inclusive economic development agenda. Also, given that all the indicators are positive -be it on the fiscal deficit numbers and targets set for it or the roadmap on carbon neutrality and without any tinkering of taxes, especially the corporate tax adding to policy stability – is confidence-inducing for investors across the board,” Shaw said.

Also Read

She makes a particular mention of the research and innovation emphasis for catalysing growth with ‘Jai Vigyan’ and ‘Jai Anusandhan’ slogans added to what in India began with ‘Jai Jawan’ and ‘Jai Kisan’ and now making innovation the foundation of future growth with a corpus of 1 lakh crore rupees for financing or re-financing of long term loans at minimal interest rates to help private sector to leverage R&D in sunrise sectors- pharma is deemed a sunrise sector.

For the healthcare sector, Shaw feels it was heartening to see measures to boost bio-manufacturing and bio-foundry.

In her speech, finance minister Nirmala Sitaraman said: “For promoting green growth, a new scheme of bio-manufacturing and bio-foundry will be launched. This will provide environment friendly alternatives such as biodegradable polymers, bio-plastics, bio-pharmaceuticals and bio-agri-inputs. This scheme will also help in transforming today’s consumptive manufacturing paradigm to the one based on regenerative principles.”

There has been lot for the healthcare sector in this budget with several elements including the cover under Ayushman Bharat scheme extended to all ASHA workers, Anganwadi workers and helpers, she said.