Technology companies are expecting much from Budget 2018-2019.
Most of them said they want investment support and better infrastructure.
Founder and CEO of Aurelius, Sumit Peer said, "With the fast paced developments in the IT industry, added with changing consumer buying patterns, the industry is going through a demand-supply gap. The industry is in dire need of complete re-skilling of the entire IT population. Union Budget 2018 should provide incentives for infrastructure in the IT sector so that high level of technology and talent development can take place in the digital space."
"Another crucial facet of the IT industry is the application side of technology. This evolving aspect of the IT industry brings in immense opportunities, but requires a special attention for its optimal utilisation," he added.
Hemalatha Annamalai of Ampere Vehicles Private Ltd, a Ratan Tata backed EV tech company, said, "Input and output GST should be made zero for EVs to make them a preferred choice for short distance commuters, while providing the last mile connectivity. If the GST is zero, we will have all components for EVs made in India, creating jobs. Also it will be a big boost to 'Make in India' and manufacturing sector. Added advantage is that this move will ensure reliability and quality in EV production."
"For batteries, recycling and refurbishing can be ensured. Given that the number of EVs sold in the country constitute a very small fraction of all automobiles sold, the impact of tax exemption coupled with added incentives, will not be burdensome for the exchequer," Annamalai added.
Speaking on the expectations of health tech startup companies, founder and executive director, Lambda Lifesciences, Kunjan Arora said, "Investment support from government and investors for the Indian health related technologies, especially those which are globally patented, is the need of the hour. This will not only promote Indian companies, but also reduce the burden of health infrastructure, while additionally, reducing the insurance payouts of the government and private sector."
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"Additionally, health tech should be put under the 'Make in India' initiative and be made an integral part of 'National Health Mission', so that indigenous manufacturing can be made possible, creating more jobs," Arora added.
Desi Valli, founder and CEO Netree said, "Rationalisation of GST should be done with just one to two plainer slabs along with simplification on account of filing of returns. Also, the audit filing returns need to be simplified through maximum ceiling. Too many slabs create compliance burden for small and medium enterprises. As we need to deal with all the stakeholders in retail value chain, simplification of procedure will make the compliance easier and error free."
"Further, there should be tax incentives on digital payments for small and medium retailers as digital transactions enable them to be a part of formal retail value chain while promoting transparency and accuracy in the system," Valli added.