Bhubaneswar: Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman presented the Interim Budget for 2024-25 in Parliament Thursday. The last budget of Modi government before the General Elections contained several offerings for citizens and industries, like the two crore additional homes that will be brought under the PM-AWAS Yojana, rooftop solar power facility for millions of households, and the boost to MSMEs to help them compete at the global level.
On the occasion, OrissaPOST spoke to experts from different sectors and politicians to get insights into their understanding and response to the budget: Educationist and chairperson of the SAI International Education Group Silpi Sahoo said that the Interim Budget intends to be accessible and inclusive for all. “It prioritizes the education sector among several others and is a step forward from last year’s focus on job creation. It promotes skill development, boosts employment, and encourages entrepreneurship. We welcome investments in progressive technologies like AI, integrating it with education, and the emphasis on digital literacy as well as STEM education, specially for women,” she said. Entrepreneur Sakyasingha Mahapatra said, “Overall, the Interim Budget looks positive with focus on the future. The budget clearly shows that the government has its focus set on Innovation and research. With a Rs 1 lakh crore corpus set for long-term financing of techsavvy youths, with 50-year interest-free loans, it gives a major push to innovation and entrepreneurship.” Speaking on the budget, Congress leader Niranjan Patnaik said, “PM Modi calls this year’s budget a ‘historic budget’! Indeed, it is historic because never in the history of Indian budgeting has such an anti-common man budget been tabled in the Parliament.
The fact is, despite optimistic Budget Estimates, the Revised Estimates paint a different picture.” “Agricultural allocation fell short by 3.3 per cent, Education faced a 6.5 per cent cut, Health witnessed a 10.9 per cent decrease, and Social Welfare experienced a 15 per cent reduction. Questions arise as to why the government spent less than planned,” he said.
Giving his perspective on the budget’s impact on the social sector, activist Sudarshan Chhotoray said, “The Union Budget, presented with an eye on General Elections, has tried to woo women and youth promising additional two crore PMAY houses of which 75 per cent will be in the name of women.” Similarly, CPI leader Jayanta Das said, “In this budget, while corporate tax and property tax have been reduced, the minimum income tax will be revised next July without any reduction. Although the government repeatedly expressed reservation of seats for women in parliament and legislative assembly, this will not be implemented in the 2024 general elections.” “The Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Scheme has not included the necessary expenditure. No expenditure has been earmarked for poverty alleviation of the most exploited sections of the country. No special remunerative rate hike has been announced for farmers in terms of minimum support price,” he said.
ARINDAM GANGULY, OP