The Minister of Finance of the Union has presented the Budget for 2020-21. Given below are important macroeconomic indicators and proposed tax reforms in India.
Moreover, the Union Budget 2021 lays emphasis on the seven pillars for invigorating the economy
Health and success
Physical and Monetary capital and infrastructure
Inclusive Development for Aspirational India
Reinvigorating Human resources, Innovate and Research & Development
Minimum Government with Maximum Governance
Furthermore, vital announcements enclosed a slew of hikes in custom duty to benefit MAKE IN INDIA, varied infrastructure pledges to poll-bound stats, and a proposal to disinvest two additional PSBs and general insurance organization.
Three prominent themes of the Budget:
Aspirational India - better standards of living with access to health, education and better jobs for all sections of the society
Economic Development for all - “Sabka Saath , Sabka Vikas , Sabka Vishwas”.
Caring Society - both humane and compassionate; Antyodaya as an article of faith.
Three broad themes are held together by:
Corruption free, policy-driven Good Governance.
Clean and sound financial sector.
Ease of Living underlined by the three themes of Union Budget 2020-21.
Three components of Aspirational India:
Agriculture, Irrigation, and Rural Development
Wellness, Water, and Sanitation
Education and Skills
Sixteen Action Points for Agriculture, Irrigation and Rural Development:
2.83 lakh crore to be allocated for the 16 Action Points
1.60 lakh crore for Agriculture, Irrigation & allied activities
1.23 lakh crore for Rural development & Panchayati Raj
Agriculture credit:
15 lakh crore target set for the year 2020-21.
PM-KISAN beneficiaries to be covered under the KCC scheme.
NABARD Re-finance Scheme to be further expanded.
Blue Economy:
1 lakh crore fisheries’ exports to be achieved by 2024-25.
200 lakh tonnes fish production targeted by 2022-23.
3477 Sagar Mitras and 500 Fish Farmer Producer Organisations to involve youth in fisheries extension.
Growing of algae, sea-weed and cage culture to be promoted.
Framework for development, management and conservation of marine fishery resources.
Village Storage Scheme:
To be run by the SHGs to provide farmers a good holding capacity and reduce their logistics cost.
Women, SHGs to regain their position as Dhaanya Lakshmi.
NABARD to map and geo-tag agri-warehouses, cold storages, reefer van facilities, etc.
Warehousing in line with Warehouse Development and Regulatory Authority (WDRA) norms:
Viability Gap Funding for setting up such efficient warehouses at the block/taluk level.
Food Corporation of India (FCI) and Central Warehousing Corporation (CWC) to undertake such warehouse building.
Financing on Negotiable Warehousing Receipts (e-NWR) to be integrated with e-NAM.
State governments who undertake implementation of model laws (issued by the Central government) to be encouraged.
Livestock:
Doubling of milk processing capacity to 108 million MT from 53.5 million MT by 2025.
Artificial insemination to be increased to 70% from the present 30%.
MNREGS to be dovetailed to develop fodder farms.
Foot and Mouth Disease, Brucellosis in cattle and Peste Des Petits ruminants (PPR) in sheep and goat to be eliminated by 2025.
Wellness, Water and Sanitation:
69,000 crore allocated for overall Healthcare sector.
6400 crore (out of Rs. 69,000 crore) for PM Jan Arogya Yojana (PMJAY):
More than 20,000 hospitals already empanelled under PM Jan Arogya Yojana (PMJAY).
Viability Gap Funding window proposed for setting up hospitals in the PPP mode.
Aspirational Districts with no Ayushman empanelled hospitals to be covered in the first phase.
Targeting diseases with an appropriately designed preventive regime using Machine Learning and AI.
Jan Aushadhi Kendra Scheme to offer 2000 medicines and 300 surgicals in all districts by 2024.
Education and Skills:
New Education Policy to be announced soon.
National Police University and National Forensic Science University proposed for policing science, forensic science, and cyber-forensics.
Degree level full-fledged online education program by Top-100 institutions in the National Institutional Ranking Framework.
Up to 1-year internship to fresh engineers to be provided by Urban Local Bodies.
Budget proposes to attach a medical college to an existing district hospital in PPP mode.
Special bridge courses to be designed by the Ministries of Health, and Skill Development:
To fulfill the demand for teachers, nurses, para-medical staff and care-givers abroad.
To bring in equivalence in the skill sets of the workforce and employers’ standards.
150 higher educational institutions to start apprenticeship embedded degree/diploma courses by March 2021.
External Commercial Borrowings and FDI to be enabled for education sector.
Ind-SAT proposed for Asian and African countries as a part of Study in India program.
Culture & Tourism:
Allocation of Rs. 2500 crore for 2020-21 for tourism promotion.
3150 crore proposed for Ministry of Culture for 2020-21.
An Indian Institute of Heritage and Conservation under Ministry of Culture proposed; with the status of a deemed University.
5 archaeological sites to be developed as iconic sites with on-site Museums:
Rakhigarhi (Haryana)
Hastinapur (Uttar Pradesh)
Shivsagar (Assam)
Dholavira (Gujarat)
Adichanallur (Tamil Nadu)
Re-curation of the Indian Museum in Kolkata, announced by Prime Minister in January 2020.
Museum on Numismatics and Trade to be located in the historic Old Mint building in Kolkata.
4 more museums from across the country to be taken up for renovation and re-curation.
Support for setting up of a Tribal Museum in Ranchi (Jharkhand).
Maritime museum to be set up at Lothal- the Harrapan age maritime site near Ahmedabad, by Ministry of Shipping.
State governments expected to develop a roadmap for certain identified destinations and formulate financial plans during 2021 against which specified grants to be made available to the States in 2020-21.
Environment & Climate Change:
Allocation for this purpose to be Rs.4400 crore for 2020-21.
Proposed to advise the utilities to close the running old thermal power plants with carbon emission above the pre-set norms.
States that are formulating and implementing plans for ensuring cleaner air in cities above one million to be encouraged.
PM launched Coalition for Disaster Resilient Infrastructure (CDRI) with Secretariat in Delhi. Second such international initiative after International Solar Alliance.
Financial Market:
Deepening Bond Market.
Certain specified categories of Government securities to be opened fully for non -resident investors also.
FPI limit in corporate bonds increased to 15% from 9% of its outstanding stock.
New legislation to be formulated for laying down a mechanism for netting of financial contracts.
Scope of credit default swaps to expand.
Debt Based Exchange Traded Fund expanded by a new Debt-ETF consisting primarily of Government Securities.
To give attractive access to retail investors, pension funds and long-term investors.
A Partial Credit Guarantee scheme for the NBFCs formulated post the Union budget 2019-20 to address their liquidity constraints.