The Budget goals for the Financial Year 2022-23 are a reflection of India’s aspirations for achieving its developmental goals. This simply means that the fruits of growth reach all sectors, sections and levels of the diverse Indian society. The Productivity Linked Incentives launched in14 sectors, have unlocked the potential for the creation of 60 lakh new jobs, and additional production of Rs 30 lakh crore during next 5 years and thus have proved to be a massive step for achieving the vision of AtmaNirbhar Bharat(Self-reliant India). Indian economy has shown great amount of resilience and the robust recovery in the past two years amid two waves of the pandemic is a testimony.
The Budget focus is on promoting technology-enabled development, energy transition and climate action to achieve inclusive and self-perpetuating growth for all. There is an obvious push for private investment coupled with public capital investment crowding in; and it is likely to lead to a virtuous cycle of sustainable growth for the Indian economy. The building blocks for strengthening infrastructure are as under:
(a) PM Gati Shakti
- Big public investment for modern infrastructure, to be benefited by the synergy of multi-modal approach driven by seven engines: Roads, Railways, Airports, Ports, Mass Transport, Waterways, and Logistics Infrastructure.
- Formulation of Master Plan for expressways.
- Completing 25000 km national highways in 2022-23
- Unified Logistics Interface Platform allowing data exchange among all mode operators
- Integration of Postal and Railways Network facilitating parcel movement.
- National Ropeways Development Plan as sustainable alternative to conventional roads.
(b) Inclusive Development
- providing housing, electricity, cooking gas, and access to water.
- Continuing direct benefit transfers and
- Strengthening the abilities of poor to tap all opportunities.
- 100% of post offices to come on the core banking system
- Scheduled Commercial Banks to set up 75 Digital Banking Units in 75 districts
(c) Productivity Enhancement & Investment
- Impetus to Productivity Linked Incentive in 14 sectors for achieving the vision of AtmaNirbhar Bharat to continue
- Ease of Doing Business 2.0
- Ease of Living
- Unique Land Parcel Identification Number for IT based management of land records.
- Establishing Centers of Excellence in urban planning
- Establishing C-PACE to facilitate voluntary winding up of companies
- End to end online e-Bill System and utilizing surety bonds in government procurement.
- Implementation of the new Public Sector Enterprise policy such as : Strategic sale of PSUs such as Air India and Sale of equity of PSUs such as LIC
(d) Financing of investments
- Public investment to continue to pump prime private investment and demand in 2022-23
- Introduction of Digital Rupee by 2022-23
- Infrastructure status for Data Centres and Energy Storage Systems
- Measures to aid investment by Venture Capital and Private Equity Investment
- Green Bonds to
- mobilise resources for green infrastructure
- Blended Finance for sunrise sectors
- Providing greater fiscal space to States
The Budget highlights are as follows:
(a) Providing Greater Fiscal Space to States
- Increase in outlay for ‘Scheme for Financial Assistance to States for Capital Investment’ from Rs.10,000 crore in Budget Estimates to Rs.15,000 crore in Revised Estimates for current year
- allocation of Rs.1 lakh crore in the financial year 2022-23 to assist the states in catalyzing overall investments in the economy: fifty-year interest free loans, over and above normal borrowings
- In 2022-23, States will be allowed a fiscal deficit of 4% of GSDP, of which 0.5% will be tied to power sector reforms
(b) Agriculture and Allied Sectors
- Direct payment to 1.63 crore farmers to the tune of Rs.2.37 lakh crore for procurement of wheat and paddy
- Promoting chemical free Natural farming throughout the county. Initial focus is on farmer’s lands in 5 Km wide corridors along river Ganga
- NABARD to facilitate fund with blended capital to finance startups for agriculture & rural enterprise
- Allowing deployment of ‘Kisan Drones’ for crop assessment, digitization of land records, spraying of insecticides and nutrients
- Implementation of the Ken-Betwa Link Project, at an estimated cost of Rs 44,605 crore will be taken up aimed at providing irrigation benefits to 9.08 lakh hectare of farmers’ lands, drinking water supply for 62 lakh people, 103 MW of Hydro, and 27 MW of solar power
(c) MSMEs & Industry
- Various portals such as udyam, e-shram, NCS and ASEEM will be interlinked
- Additional credit under Emergency Credit Linked Guarantee Scheme (ECLGS) ECLGS to be extended up to March 2023
- Guarantee cover under ECLGS to be expanded by Rs.50000 Crore to total cover of Rs.5 Lakh Crore
- Rs.2 lakh Crore additional credit for Micro and Small Enterprises to be facilitated under the Credit Guarantee Trust for Micro and Small Enterprises (CGTMSE)
- Raising and Accelerating MSME performance (RAMP) programme with outlay of Rs.6000 Crore to be rolled out
(d) Education
- One class-One TV channel’ programme of PM eVIDYA (e-Education) to be expanded to 200 TV channels
- Virtual labs and skilling e-labs to be set up to promote critical thinking skills and simulated learning environment
- High-quality e-content will be developed for delivery through Digital Teachers
- Digital University for world-class quality universal education with personalized learning experience to be established
(e) Public Capital Investment
- Outlay for capital expenditure stepped up sharply by 35.4% to Rs.7.50 lakh crore in 2022-23 from Rs.5.54 lakh crore in the current year
- Outlay in 2022-23 to be 2.9% of GDP
- ‘Effective Capital Expenditure’ of Central Government estimated at Rs.10.68 lakh crore in 2022-23, which is about 4.1% of GDP
(f) Saksham Anganwadi
- Integrated benefits to women and children through Mission Shakti, Mission Vatsalya, Saksham Anganwadi and Poshan 2.0
- Two lakh anganwadis to be upgraded to Saksham Anganwadis
(g) Health
- An open platform for National Digital Health Ecosystem to be rolled out
- National Tele Mental Health Programme’ for quality mental health counselling and care services to be launched
- A network of 23 tele-mental health centres of excellence will be set up, with NIMHANS being the nodal centre and International Institute of Information Technology-Bangalore (IIITB) providing technology support
(h) Energy Transition & Climate Action
- Additional allocation of Rs.19,500 crore for Production Linked Incentive for manufacture of high efficiency solar modules to meet the goal of 280 GW of installed solar power by 2030
- Five to seven per cent biomass pellets to be co-fired in thermal power plants:
- CO2 savings of 38 MMT annually
- Extra income to farmers and job opportunities to locals
- Help avoid stubble burning in agriculture fields
- Four pilot projects to be set up for coal gasification and conversion of coal into chemicals for the industry
- Financial support to farmers belonging to Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes, who want to take up agro-forestry
(i) Sunrise Opportunities
Government contribution to be provided for R&D in Sunrise Opportunities like
- Artificial Intelligence,
- Geospatial Systems and Drones,
- Semiconductor and its eco-system,
- Space Economy, Genomics and Pharmaceuticals, Green Energy,
- and Clean Mobility Systems
(j) Banking
- 100 per cent of 1.5 lakh post offices to come on the core banking system.
- Scheduled Commercial Banks to set up 75 Digital Banking Units (DBUs) in 75 districts