About Budget 2024:
Ahead of this year’s Lok Sabha elections, the interim budget is required. Following the general elections, the newly elected government will announce the full budget for the fiscal year 2024–25. Interim Budgets are typically devoid of new tax proposals or new schemes when they are presented to the Lok Sabha in advance of the general elections.
The government will ask Parliament for approval in the interim budget to cover its costs for the first four months of the 2024–25 fiscal year. It might include recommendations to deal with urgent financial issues that can’t wait until four months after the new government is formed and the entire budget is presented.
Who Will Present The Budget?
When the Finance Minister presents the budget for the sixth time in a row on February 1, it is anticipated that she will step up efforts to boost the rural economy and increase consumption while keeping inflation under control.
An additional proposal pertains to augmenting the funds under the MGNREGA (Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme) and providing farmers with a larger payout.
Experts said that as part of Sitharaman’s attempt to increase consumption ahead of the general elections, women and marginalized communities might receive extra benefits.
What To Expect From The Union Budget:
Despite pressure from pollsters, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will choose to further reduce the fiscal deficit in the upcoming budget for FY25 to 5.3% of India’s gross domestic product, a foreign brokerage said on January 19.
According to a note from BofA Securities, the government will fulfill its commitment to lower the significant figure to 5.9 percent by FY24. In a note, its analysts stated, “We see Center’s fiscal deficit to consolidate further to 5.3 percent of GDP, despite poll pressure.”
According to EY’s 2024 Budget Expectations report, the government may decide to extend the favorable 15 percent income tax rate for corporations establishing new manufacturing units by a year, until March 31, 2025, in an effort to stimulate private investment. The interim budget for 2024–25 is expected to be presented by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on February 1.
According to EY’s Budget Expectations Report, the government will maintain its emphasis on making paying taxes easy in the interim budget, but legislative reforms will remain a work in progress. According to EY, the interim budget may extend the deadline for companies taking advantage of the 15% concessional income tax rate to begin manufacturing from March 31, 2024, to March 31, 2025, in order to promote increased investment in the manufacturing sector and exports.
