 "Nitin Gadkari")
Union Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari on Thursday said that the 2024 interim budget will strengthen the country's financial position, increase exports, develop manufacturing business and create new employment thus promoting the resolution taken by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to make India the third largest economy in his third term.
"This budget by the Union Finance Minister is going to strengthen India's financial position, increase the export, develop the manufacturing business and create new employment and will further the resolution taken by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to make India the third largest economy," said Nitin Gadkari.
Last year in December, Prime Minister Narendra Modi promised to make India the third-largest economy in the world in his third consecutive term.
"I have complete faith that since the infrastructure has received the highest priority, our budget has also increased and in the coming time, the country's all four sectors of infrastructure--railways, roads, airports and power--will be of world standard," he said.
The Union Road Transport and Highways Minister further said this budget presented by Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi will provide pace to the development of the nation and increase employment while at the same time, it will also focus on the betterment of farmers and poors.
The interim budget, tabled today, will take care of the financial needs of the intervening period until a government is formed after the Lok Sabha polls after which a full budget will be presented by the new government in July.
With this Budget Presentation, Sitharaman equalled the record set by former Prime Minister Morarji Desai, who as finance minister, presented five annual budgets and one interim budget between 1959 and 1964.
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As expected and in relief for the citizens, the central government neither tweaked nor put any additional tax burden on citizens, in the interim Budget for 2024-25 tabled by Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman.
"Keeping with the convention, I do not propose to make any changes relating to taxation and propose to retain the same tax rates for direct taxes and indirect taxes including import duties," Sitharaman said in her Budget speech on Thursday.
However, certain tax benefits to start-ups and investments made by sovereign wealth or pension funds as well as tax exemption on certain income of some IFSC units are expiring in March 2024. To provide continuity in taxation, she proposed to extend the date by another year.
Moreover, in line with the government's vision to improve ease of living and ease of doing business, she announced to improve tax-payer services.
"There are a large number of petty, non-verified, non-reconciled or disputed direct tax demands, many of them dating as far back as the year 1962, which continue to remain on the books, causing anxiety to honest tax-payers and hindering refunds of subsequent years," she said.
Presenting the Union Budget 2023, Sitharaman on Thursday pegged the fiscal deficit target for 2024-25 at 5.1 per cent of gross domestic product (GDP).
In 2023-24, the government pegged the fiscal deficit target for 2023-24 at 5.9 per cent of gross domestic product (GDP). Today, Sitharaman said that the fiscal deficit of 2023-24 was downwardly revised to 5.8 per cent.
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