Every announcement in Budget 2017 stems from demonetisation

Sops, tighter political funding aimed at easing note ban woes

Finance Minister Arun Jaitley mentioned his government’s demonetisation drive only briefly in his opening remarks of the Union Budget 2017-18. However, the entire budget from thereon, almost every sop, every tax break, every feel-good announcement, happened because of the note ban.

This, one of the most populist budgets in recent history, went all out to announce benefits for the poor, the rural sector, farmers, small businesses, and the salaried classes. These are the very groups that were most affected by demonetisation, when Rs 15.4 lakh crore worth of high denomination notes were deemed invalid in one fell swoop by Prime