Finance and Corporate Affairs Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, ahead of the presentation of the Union Budget for FY 2024-25, chaired four pre-Budget consultations with leading economists, experts of the financial and capital markets sector, industry leaders and associations, and with representatives from Farmer Associations and Agriculture Economists.
While there is no official announcement on the date of the presentation of the Union Budget, per reports, the Union Budget for the fiscal year 2024-25 is expected to be tabled in the Parliament during the Monsoon Session of the Parliament, in the third week of July. According to sources, the Monsoon Session of Parliament is expected to begin on July 22 and it is likely to continue till August 9.
Consultations with economists
On Wednesday, the finance minister chaired the first pre-Budget consultations with leading economists in connection with the forthcoming General Budget 2024-25. The meeting saw the presence of Union Minister of State for Finance Pankaj Chaudhary, the finance secretary, secretaries of the departments of economic affairs, revenue, financial services and corporate affairs and the chief economic adviser. 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.”
Consultations with financial and capital markets sector
Later on Thursday, FM Sitharaman held the second pre-Budget consultation meeting with leading experts of the financial and capital markets sector. The pre-Budget consultation meeting was attended by Union Minister of State for Finance Pankaj Chaudhary, Finance Secretary and Secretaries of Department of Expenditure; Departments of Economic Affairs, Department of Investment and Public Asset Management (DIPAM), Revenue of Department of Financial Services (DFS), and Corporate Affairs and Chief Economic Adviser.
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.”
The Indian Venture and Alternative Capital Association (IVCA), the apex industry body for alternative assets in India, too participated in a pre-Budget consultation. The IVCA delegation focused on fostering a more enabling regulatory environment to propel the growth of the alternative asset industry in India. IVCA made suggestions to mainstream AIF investments and encourage and enable large domestic capital pools of insurance and pension funds to participate in the AIF industry to finance Infrastructure, credit and start-ups, scale-ups & growth companies. IVCA also urged the government to operationalise the 2022 budget announcement of blended finance as well through a Fund of Funds approach managed by competent managers for directing capital to strategies which are in alignment with govt priorities. The industry body urged the government to operationalize the recommendations of the Expert Committee on PE-VC, chaired by former SEBI Chairman MDamodaran, which was initiated by the Department of Economic Affairs (DEA).
Consultations with industry leaders and associations
Further, the finance minister held the third pre-Budget consultation meeting with industry leaders and associations. After the meeting, PHDCCI suggested the ministry to bolster the manufacturing sector, support consumption demand and provide relief to middle income groups with rationalization of tax slabs. The industry body suggested 10 reforms to strengthen India’s journey towards Viksit Bharat. These included, 1) Further reforms to enhance the manufacturing share in GDP to 25 per cent by 2030; 2) Expand the PLI scheme beyond the 14 sectors; 3) Change in Classification Norms of MSMEs for NPAs from the 90 days limit to 180 days; 4) Rationalization of direct taxes for the middle class; 5) Focus more on tier 2 and 3 cities with state of the art infrastructure and smart villages with adequate facilitation of public utilities; 6) Status quo on the corporate tax rates; 7) Strengthen University-Industry Linkages to enhance R&D activity in the country; 8) Reduce costs of doing business including costs of capital, costs of power, costs of logistics, costs of land and costs of compliances; 9) Implement the four labour codes across the states to enhance the competitiveness of the industry; and 10) Strengthen supply chains and address the shortages in key food items to mitigate inflationary pressures.
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. “We look forward to a prudent budget that builds upon the strengths of the Indian economy for accelerated growth and remains committed to fiscal consolidation,” he added. Highlighting the importance of simplification of the tax system, Subhrakant Panda said, “The Union Budget 2024-25 should continue the process of simplification and rationalization of taxes for enhancing ease of doing business. This will also reduce tax related litigations and improve efficiency in the taxation system.” He further added that there is a need to keep an eye on global developments in the current uncertain times to ensure that the Indian industry is not impacted adversely.
Consultations with farmer associations and agriculture economists
And today, the finance minister held the fourth 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.
Nirmala Sitharaman is all set to surpass the record of presenting the maximum number of Budgets in a row. With the presentation of Union Budget 2024, she will surpass former finance minister Morarji Desai’s record of presenting the budget six consecutive times. The Budget is expected to lay out Modi 3.0’s economic agenda.