Nirmala Sitharaman Budget 2024 Live Updates: With the Narendra Modi-led NDA government sworn in, and after the 53rd GST Council already having announced several recommendations post its meeting on June 22, Finance Minster Nirmala Sitharaman is expected to table the Union Budget for FY25 on July 23 or 24, sources told FinancialExpress.com. The Budget will be presented with the commencement of the Monsoon Session of the Parliament. The Monsoon Session is set to begin on July 22, per sources. The session is likely to continue until August 9. The first session of the 18th Lok Sabha, which commenced today, will go on till July 4 and will close sine die as this is a special session.
Earlier on June 22, the 53rd GST Council meeting, chaired by the finance minister, deliberated on various proposals to streamline GST applicability across goods and services, and several recommendations were made to refine tax rates and service exemptions under the GST regime. FM Sitharaman emphasized the Centre’s support to states with timely tax devolution and GST compensation arrears to boost growth. She also highlighted the government’s support through timely tax devolution, Finance Commission grants, and GST compensation arrears to stimulate growth, according to an official statement.
The first Budget of India was presented in 1860 by Scottish economist James Wilson, who introduced income tax collection. Independent India‘s first Budget was presented by Finance Minister RK Shanmukham Chetty on 26 November 1947, three months after India gained independence.
While there is no official announcement on the date of the presentation of the date of the Budget yet some of the key aspects to watch out for include:
1. Schemes: The first Budget by the Modi 3.0 Cabinet is expected to be high on the welfare agenda. Most industry experts believe that several income support schemes might be in the pipeline and facilities in line with PM Kisan Yojana may be planned to boost incomes of deprived families.
2. Capex: The gradual slowing of public capita expenditure has been a point of concern after the Interim Budget. The private corporations have been doing most of the heavy lifting. However, going forward in this new Budget for FY25, the street expects to see some significant boost to Capex.
3. Increasing Healthcare & Education Spend: The other segment that’s expected to receive a boost is the allocation for Healthcare and Education. Both these sectors have been highlighted as the key growth areas.
The 52nd GST Council meeting was held on October 7, 2023, and was presided over by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and attended by Finance MoS Shri Pankaj Chaudhary, the Revenue Secretary, Chairman CBIC, Member CM, Member GST, Member TP and senior officers from Union Government and States. In this meeting, the GST Council had announced the imposition of 28% levy on online gaming, casinos, and horse racing. Later in the March GST meeting, the council had postponed the review of the levy imposed on the proceeds from online gaming.
According to the data released by the Ministry of Finance, the Central Goods and Services Tax (CGST) collection came in at Rs 32,409 crore. The State Goods and Services Tax (SGST) stood at Rs 40,265 crore. Meanwhile, Integrated Goods and Services Tax (IGST) was at Rs 87,781 crore, including Rs 39,879 crore collected on imported goods.
For the full FY25 so far, the ministry collected CGST of Rs 76,255 crore and SGST of Rs 93,804 crore. IGST for FY25 so far came in at Rs 1,87,404 crore, including Rs 77,706 crore collected on imported goods.
According to the latest data released by the Ministry of Finance, Goods & Services Tax (GST) collections during the month of May 2024 stood at Rs 1.73 lakh crore. This is 10 per cent higher than the same period last year. For April, GST collection had breached the Rs 2 lakh crore milestone. The gross GST collection during April was recorded at Rs 2.10 lakh crore, up 12.4 per cent on-year.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will likely table the Union Budget for FY25 on July 23 or 24, sources told FinancialExpress.com. The Budget will be presented with the commencement of the Monsoon Session of the Parliament, slated to begin on July 22, per sources. The session is likely to continue until August 9.
Meanwhile, the special session of the 18th Lok Sabha commenced today and it will go on till July 4 and will close sine die as this is a special session.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced that the GST Council has recommended setting monetary thresholds for filing appeals by the department in various courts. “To reduce government litigation, the council has recommended a monetary limit of Rs 20 lakh for the GST Appellate Tribunal, Rs 1 crore for High Court, and Rs 2 crore for the Supreme Court for filing appeals by the department,” she said.
The GST Council recommended extending the time limit to furnish the details and the returns in the form GSTR 4 from 30th April to 30th June. This will apply for returns for the Financial Year 2024-25 onwards,” Nirmala Sitharaman added.
During her address after the GST Council Meet, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman emphasized the Centre’s commitment to bolstering states’ economies through prompt tax devolution and the settlement of GST compensation arrears to drive growth. She highlighted the ‘Scheme for Special Assistance to States for Capital Investment’, maintaining that while most loans are unrestricted, a portion remains conditional on states implementing citizen-centric reforms and specific capital projects across sectors.
The GST Council made following recommendations on GST on services:
After the 53rd GST Council meeting, GST Council recommended the following changes in GST rate:
The Goods and Services Tax (GST) Council meeting was held on June 22. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman presided over the meeting. The meeting was attended by MoS finance Pankaj Chaudhary, chief ministers of Goa and Meghalaya, deputy chief ministers of Bihar, Haryana, Madhya Pradesh, and Odisha, besides finance ministers of states & UTs and other senior officers.
The incumbent government presents the estimates of its expenditure, revenue, fiscal deficit and financial performance and projections for the upcoming financial year, in the interim budget. The government, at the end of its tenure, presents an interim budget for 3-4 months to keep the country running.
An interim budget does not make any major policy announcements which could financially burden the next government that will present the full Union Budget.
While a budget has two parts – the report of expenses and income in the previous year and the proposed expenses and income generation in the coming year, the interim budget contains the first part, but the second part will contain documentation of basic expenses until the election.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, today (June 24) chaired the sixth pre-Budget consultation with trade unions and labour organisations to gather suggestions for the forthcoming General Budget 2024-25, in New Delhi. The meeting was also attended by Secretaries of the Department of Economic Affairs, Ministry of Finance; Ministry of Labour and Employment; and Chief Economic Adviser, Government of India.
Presented by an incumbent government or the government that is going through a transition period or is in its last year in office before the general elections held every 5 years, an interim budget contains detailed documentation of all the expenses to be incurred and every rupee to be earned through taxes in the coming few months until the general elections. An incumbent government cannot present the full budget.
With this, the incumbent government seeks a vote of approval from Parliament to extract money from the consolidated fund of India, where the government puts all its revenue, to meet its budget expenses before the end of the financial year. The interim budget also consists of some policy measures.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will present the full Budget for FY25 in a few weeks from now. Per media reports, the Budget is expected to be presented in the third week of July coinciding with the Monsoon Session of the Parliament.
On February 1, 2024, the finance minister had presented the Interim Budget, which is technically a vote on account ahead of the elections to take care of government expenses in the interim till a new Government is voted to power. This happens every 5 years or when the existing government is dissolved and elections are held.
The finance minister chaired the first pre-Budget consultations, on June 19, with leading economists in connection with the forthcoming General Budget 2024-25. Talking about the meeting, economist Ashwani Mahajan told PTI, “We have held the first pre-budget meeting. Top economists from across the nation attended the meeting and gave their suggestions about the budget.”
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, on June 20, held the second pre-Budget consultation meeting with leading experts of the financial and capital markets sector. Following the meeting, Nilesh Shah, MD, Kotak Mahindra AMC, said, “I shared with the Honourable Finance Minister that under the aegis of our regulator SEBI, mutual funds have spread financial awareness. We have enlisted more than 4 crore Indians to participate in the journey of Viksit Bharat and secure their financial freedom. We need to reach out to far more Indians now to secure their financial freedom. We requested Honourable FM to launch a Jan Nivesh campaign to create financial inclusion for crores of Indians who are stuck in Ponzi schemes and speculations.”
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman held her third pre-Budget consultation meeting with industry leaders and associations. After the meeting, PHDCCI said that the association suggested the ministry to bolster the manufacturing sector, support consumption demand and provide relief to middle income groups with rationalization of tax slabs. Meanwhile, Subhrakant Panda, Immediate Past President, FICCI, also emphasized the need to continue supporting the growth momentum by energizing demand, laying thrust on infrastructure development, taking further measures to rein in food inflation, supporting MSMEs and prioritizing innovation and research & development in the country.
On June 21, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman held a pre-Budget consultation meeting with the representatives from farmer associations and agriculture economists. The meeting was attended by Minister of State for Finance, Pankaj Chaudhary, Finance Secretary TV Somanathan, Chief Economic Adviser, V Anantha Nageswaran, Secretary Department of Economic Affairs and senior officers from the Agriculture Ministry.
Union Minister for Finance and Corporate Affairs Nirmala Sitharaman, on June 22, chaired a pre-Budget consultation with finance ministers from states and union territories. The objective of the meeting was to gather insights and recommendations for the upcoming Union Budget 2024-25. The meeting was attended by Union Minister of State for Finance Pankaj Chaudhary, chief ministers from Goa, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, and Sikkim, deputy chief ministers from Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Odisha, Rajasthan, and Telangana, state finance ministers, other ministers, and senior officials from states and UTs with Legislature, in addition to representatives from the union government.
Per the sources, the Monsoon Session of Parliament is slated to begin on July 22. It is likely to continue until August 9. The government is expected to present the Union Budget for 2024-25 during the Monsoon Session. The Session is also to cover the oath/affirmation of newly elected members, the election of the speaker, the President’s address, and subsequent discussions.
According to reports, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman is expected to table the Union Budget for the fiscal year 2024-25 in the Parliament in the third week of July. However, there has been no official announcement on the date of the presentation of the Budget.
The Budget is expected on the first day of the Monsoon Session of the Parliament, which is likely to commence on July 22.
Nirmala Sitharaman had, on February 1, 2024, presented the interim budget for 2024-25 in the Parliament.
As the Lok Sabha session commenced today, Prime Minister Narendra Modi took oath as member of the 18th Lok Sabha. This marks the first session of the 18th Lok Sabha following the general elections, in which the NDA secured 293 seats, the INDIA bloc obtained 234 seats, and the Congress party held 99 of those seats.
Earlier today, President Droupadi Murmu administered the oath to BJP lawmaker Bhartruhari Mahtab as the pro tem Speaker of the Lok Sabha. On June 26, the Lok Sabha Speaker will also be elected, followed by President Droupadi Murmu’s address to a joint sitting of both Houses the next day, on June 27. The session will conclude on July 3.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi also attended the oath-taking ceremony of pro-tem Speaker Bhartruhari Mahtab at Rashtrapati Bhavan.
The 18th Lok Sabha session commenced today (June 24) with the oath-taking ceremony of newly-elected Members of Parliament, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The inaugural special session of Parliament amid Opposition alliance INDIA bloc targeting the NDA government on several issues, including rising prices, food inflation, deaths due to an unprecedented heatwave, and recent irregularities in exam administration, including NEET UG, NEET PG, UGC NET, and others.
With the government preparing its full Budget for FY25, North Block, which houses the finance ministry in New Delhi, is ‘quarantined’ starting June 13 until the Budget is presented in July. The ministry will remain out of bounds for visitors and media till the Union Budget is tabled in the Parliament.
According to a report by PTI, all the entry and exit points of the finance minister, during the ‘quarantine’ period, are guarded by security personnel while the Intelligence Bureau (IB) personnel, assisted by Delhi police, keep a close watch on the movements of people entering the rooms of the officials working on the Budget.
After the finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman took charge, she instructed officials to start the budget formulation process. She stressed on the importance of meticulous planning and thorough analysis. The early start is aimed to ensure that the Budget is well-structured and effectively addresses the country’s economic priorities and even challenges.
Nirmala Sitharaman, on June 12, formally assumed office as the Finance and Corporate Affairs Minister of the newly formed NDA government. The finance minister is expected to soon table the Union Budget for FY25, in line with the tone of Modi 3.0 government’s priorities and direction towards a ‘Viksit Bharat’. She noted that the government is fully committed to ensuring ‘Ease of Living’ for its citizens and will continue to take further steps in this regard.
Greetings! Welcome to the live coverage of Budget 2024-25. Here, we will keep you updated with all the announcements about the probable date when Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman is expected to table the Budget. We will also bring together all the key metrics and economic parameters that may or may not affect the announcements in the annual Budget. Stay tuned with financialexpress.com as we provide real-time updates, insights, and expert opinions on what to expect from the upcoming budget.