F.M. Nirmala Sitharaman is ready for upcoming budget 2024

Updated On: July 25, 2024 5:56 am

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman is set to present the historic Union Budget 2024-25 on July 23, 2024, becoming the first finance minister to present seven consecutive budgets. The budget is expected to focus on job creation, macroeconomic stability, and inclusive growth, while drawing from the government’s vision for a developed India by 2047.

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman is gearing up to present the Union Budget 2024–25 on July 23, 2024, in what will be a landmark achievement in her career. This budget will mark the first full-fledged financial plan of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s third term, following the interim budget presented in February.

Sitharaman’s upcoming budget speech will make history as she becomes the first finance minister in India’s history to present seven consecutive Union Budgets. This surpasses the previous record held by Morarji Desai, who presented six budgets during his tenure from 1959 to 1964.

The budget session of Parliament is scheduled from July 22 to August 12, with the Economic Survey to be released on July 22, a day before the budget presentation. The government is expected to focus on job creation while maintaining macroeconomic stability, building on the agenda laid out in the first 100 days before the elections.

Key Highlights of the Interim Budget 2024-25

In the interim budget presented on February 1, 2024, Sitharaman had pegged the fiscal deficit for FY25 at 5.1% of GDP. The government continued its focus on capital expenditure, hiking it by 16.9% to ₹11.11 lakh crore.

Some key highlights of the interim budget speech:

The Indian economy has witnessed profound positive transformation in the last ten years, with people looking ahead to the future with hope and optimism.
Structural reforms were undertaken, pro-people programmes were formulated and implemented promptly, and conditions were created for more opportunities for employment and entrepreneurship.
The ‘whole of nation’ approach of ‘Sabka Prayas’ helped the country overcome the challenge of the once-in-a-century pandemic and take long strides towards ‘Atmanirbhar Bharat’.
The scheme of a fifty-year interest-free loan for capital expenditure to states will be continued this year with a total outlay of ₹1.3 lakh crore.
The fiscal deficit in 2024–25 is estimated to be 5.1% of GDP, adhering to the path of fiscal consolidation announced in the Budget Speech for 2021-22.

Expectations from the Union Budget 2024-25

The upcoming Union Budget is highly anticipated, with the government expected to unveil many historic steps. The budget is likely to draw from five-year plans and the vision document for making India a developed nation by 2047.

Some key expectations from the budget include:

Continued focus on macroeconomic stability and job creation
Measures to boost private investments and entrepreneurship
Increased allocation for infrastructure development and social welfare schemes
Simplification of tax laws and reduction in compliance burden
Initiatives to promote digital economy and technological innovation

Challenges and Opportunities

The finance minister faces several challenges in presenting the budget, such as the need to balance fiscal prudence with growth-oriented policies, address rising inflation and unemployment, and ensure equitable development across all regions and sections of society.

However, the government also has several opportunities to leverage, such as the strong economic growth momentum, with GDP growing at 7.8% in Q4 of FY24, and the higher dividend received from the Reserve Bank of India amounting to ₹2.11 lakh crore.

Conclusion

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman’s upcoming budget speech will be a historic moment in Indian financial history, as she becomes the first finance minister to present seven consecutive Union Budgets. The budget is expected to be a blueprint for the government’s vision of a developed India by 2047, with a focus on job creation, macroeconomic stability, and inclusive growth.

The successful implementation of the budget proposals will be crucial in realizing the government’s development agenda and ensuring a brighter future for all Indians.