Interim Union Budget 2024-25: What You Need To Know

The Interim Union Budget 2024-25 was presented by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on February 1, 2024, in the backdrop of the COVID-19 pandemic and the economic recovery. The budget aimed to provide relief to the common man and the MSMEs, while also boosting the health, infrastructure, agriculture, education, and innovation sectors.

The total expenditure for the fiscal year 2024-25 is estimated at Rs. 47.66 lakh crore, which is 6.8% higher than the revised estimate of 2020-21. The fiscal deficit is projected at 6.8% of the GDP, down from 9.5% in the current year. The government aims to bring down the fiscal deficit to below 4.5% by 2025-26.

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Here is the list based on the Interim Union Budget 2024:

Record Spending on Infrastructure Creation

The infrastructure sector received a significant boost of Rs. 11.11 lakh crore, which is 34.5% higher than the previous year. This includes:

• Rs. 1.18 lakh crore for roads and highways, including the Bharatmala Pariyojana and the Delhi-Mumbai Expressway.
• Rs. 1.10 lakh crore for railways, including the Eastern and Western Dedicated Freight Corridors and the MetroLite and MetroNeo projects.
• Rs. 3,05,984 crore for power, including the expansion of the National Grid and the renewable energy sector.
• Rs. 1,01,814 crore for urban development, including the Smart Cities Mission and the Swachh Bharat Mission.

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The budget also announced several measures to boost the agricultural sector, such as:

• Increasing the agricultural credit target to Rs. 16.5 lakh crore, with a focus on animal husbandry, dairy, and fisheries.
• Enhancing the scope of the Operation Green scheme to include 22 perishable products, and providing a 50% subsidy for transportation and storage of these products.
• Creating a unified market for agricultural produce through the e-NAM platform, which has 1,000 mandis and 1.68 crore farmers registered.
• Increasing the allocation for the Micro Irrigation Fund by Rs. 5,000 crore, and extending the Swamitva scheme to cover all states and UTs, which will provide property cards to rural households.

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Relief and Stimulus for the Common Man and the MSMEs

The budget also provided relief and stimulus measures for the common man and the MSMEs, who have been severely affected by the pandemic and the lockdown. Some of the key measures are:

• Extending the Atmanirbhar Bharat Rozgar Yojana, which provides subsidy for provident fund contribution for new employees, till March 31, 2022.
• Launching a portal to collect information on gig workers, construction workers, and migrant workers, and to extend social security benefits to them.
• Allocating Rs. 15,700 crore for the MSME sector, which is more than double the previous year, and revising the definition of small companies under the Companies Act, 2013, by increasing their threshold for paid-up capital and turnover.
• Increasing the foreign direct investment (FDI) limit in the insurance sector from 49% to 74%, and allowing foreign ownership and control with safeguards.
• Privatizing two public sector banks and one general insurance company, and setting up a bad bank to take over the stressed assets of the banking sector.

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The Interim Union Budget 2024 has been hailed as a growth-oriented and reformist budget, which aims to revive the economy and provide relief to the people amid the challenging times. The budget has also set the vision for a self-reliant, resilient, and inclusive India, which can emerge as a global leader in the post-pandemic world.

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