Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman today presented the first Budget of Narendra Modi Government’s third term.
In Lok Sabha, presenting the Union Budget for 2024 – 2025, the Finance Minister said despite global headwinds, the Indian Economy continues to be a shining exception and will be the fastest-growing economy in years ahead.
The Finance Minister said this budget is mainly focused on Employment, Skilling, MSMEs and Middle class as she announced the Prime Minister’s package for youth.
Presenting a detailed road map for the pursuit of ‘Viksit Bharat’, the budget mentioned nine priorities of the Government providing opportunities for all.
It includes productivity and resilience in Agriculture, Employment & Skilling, Inclusive Human Resource Development and Social Justice, Manufacturing & Services, Urban Development, Energy Security, Infrastructure, Innovation, Research & Development and Next Generation Reforms.
Government will incentivize additional employment in the manufacturing sector in the first 4 years of employment. Thirty lakh youth and their employer will get incentive in respect of their EPFO contribution.
Government will formulate a plan, Purvodaya, for the all-round development of the eastern region of the country covering Bihar, Jharkhand, West Bengal, Odisha and Andhra Pradesh with special financial support of 15 thousand crore rupees for Andhra Pradesh in current financial year.
The Finance Minister has announced several proposals for the housing sector. She said, three crore additional houses under the PM Awas Yojana in rural and urban areas in the country have been announced, for which the necessary allocations are being made.
Also for promoting women-led development, the budget carries an allocation of more than 3 lakh crore rupees for schemes benefitting women and girls.