Is India on the winning track?
Published: 02:08 PM,Aug 04,2024 | EDITED : 06:08 PM,Aug 04,2024
The recently announced Indian Budget 2024-2025 is woven with well-crafted measures towards improving the micro and macro indicators of the economy and paving the way for the much-required acceleration in all spheres. Global tensions over the past two years, preceded by post-Covid challenges, have disrupted the fundamentals of many economies and altered global performance rankings. Although India faced unprecedented stress, its inherent strengths, developed over time, coupled with a revised oil remittance mechanism with Russia, have stabilized the country and improved its economic rankings, drawing widespread appreciation.
As a prelude to the Budget 2024 – 2025, the Economic Survey 2023 – 2024 shed light on the state of affairs of the Indian economy, commending various economic achievements while expressing caution on the way forward in other areas of the economy.
“The Indian economy is on a strong wicket and stable footing, demonstrating resilience in the face of geopolitical challenges. The Indian economy has consolidated its post-Covid recovery with policymakers – fiscal and monetary – ensuring economic and financial stability. Nonetheless, change is the only constant for a country with high growth aspirations. For the recovery to be sustained, there has to be heavy lifting on the domestic front because the environment has become extraordinarily difficult to reach agreements on key global issues such as trade, investment and climate,” the survey noted, sounding more caution that voicing appreciation.
Vision for 2024 -2025:
The preparation of the Budget 2024 – 2025 was not an easy task. The yardstick of assessment of the policymakers on the economic front has remained the same. The Budget 2024 – 2025 outlines the vision of the government and it indicates positive economic indicators such as growth in GDP (Gross Domestic Product) of 6.5% to 7%, reduction of fiscal deficit as a percentage of GDP to 4.9%, increased Capital Spending on production and services to INR 15,01,889 crores, controlling the Revenue & Primary deficits to 1.8% and 1.4% GDP respectively, comfortable Forex Trade position equivalent to 11 months of projected imports, control of inflation through fiscal and monetary policies, buoyancy in tax and other collections, etc. A combination of the overall structure together with other criteria gives a great level of confidence for the future.
Tasks and allocations towards increasing GDP
Under the overall framework on the agenda for continuing the growth trajectory, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has set nine priorities covering different facets of the economy, such as Agriculture, Employment & Skilling, All Inclusive Human Resource Development, Manufacturing, Urban Development, Energy, Infrastructure, Research and Development and next generation reforms.
Practically speaking, all the sectors of the economy will get an equitable allocation by this approach and by this an all-inclusive, unified and integrated economic platform will be laid out throughout India.
Combined with the accelerated private sector investments in capital projects, supportive approach of banks, inflow of FDI, well developed infrastructure facilities and highly skillful and productive human resources, these programmes, upon implementation will ensure pushing up the overall GDP of the country to newer heights. The government is also determined to keep on reducing the overall debt levels which will augur well for reducing the deficits situation.
Besides, a Financial Sector Vision Document which is on the anvil will set the agenda for the next five years and guide the work of the government, regulators, financial institutions and market participants in close coordination with each other.
Changes to indirect taxes
The implementation of unified tax system through Goods and Services Tax (GST) is a success of great magnitude. It has decreased tax incidence on the common man, reduced compliance burden and logistics cost for trade and industry and enhanced revenues of the central and state governments. Further simplification, rationalization and expansion is in the pipeline.
The Budget 2024 - 2025 has made changes in the customs duties with a view to support domestic manufacturing, deepen local value addition, promote export competitiveness and simplify taxation, while keeping the interest of the general public and consumers in high esteem. Reduction of import duty is proposed for medicines and medical equipment, precious metals such as gold and platinum, besides a host of other items.
Changes to direct taxes
A major overhaul of the Direct Taxes Act 1961 will be completed in six months so as to make the Act concise, lucid and comprehendible and this exercise will reduce the disputes and litigation, bringing real relief and certainty to the taxpayers.
Under Personal Taxation, the significant changes are 1. Raising the Standard Deduction from INR 50,000 to INR 75,000 2. Deduction on Family Pension has increased from INR 15,000 to INR 25,000, 3. Changes in Tax Structure, resulting in a tax saving of INR 17,500.
The stock markets in India have seen the all-time high recently and obviously many investors might have made a fortune by the uptick in prices. Recognising this bonanza, combined with the favourable GDP percolating into corporate earnings and share prices in future, the Budget 2024 -2025 has hiked up the tax on Short Term Capital Gains with the Sale of Listed Investments from 15% to 20% and on Long Term Capital Gains from 10% to 12.5%. Listed financial assets sold after 12 months of holding will be treated as Long Term. Simultaneously, an increase in the exemption limit has been made from INR 100,000 to INR 125,000 per annum as a matter of relief.
To attract foreign capital for our development needs, the corporate tax rate on foreign companies gets reduced from 40 to 35 per cent.
Overall, Budget – 2024-2025 is a well-crafted blueprint of action, intending to take up different facets of the economy to the next level of excellence and also balancing between the challenges on hand, both internally and externally and the objectives set for achievement in future.
A V Manohar
The author is the CEO of Wisdom Business and Training Services LLC
As a prelude to the Budget 2024 – 2025, the Economic Survey 2023 – 2024 shed light on the state of affairs of the Indian economy, commending various economic achievements while expressing caution on the way forward in other areas of the economy.
“The Indian economy is on a strong wicket and stable footing, demonstrating resilience in the face of geopolitical challenges. The Indian economy has consolidated its post-Covid recovery with policymakers – fiscal and monetary – ensuring economic and financial stability. Nonetheless, change is the only constant for a country with high growth aspirations. For the recovery to be sustained, there has to be heavy lifting on the domestic front because the environment has become extraordinarily difficult to reach agreements on key global issues such as trade, investment and climate,” the survey noted, sounding more caution that voicing appreciation.
Vision for 2024 -2025:
The preparation of the Budget 2024 – 2025 was not an easy task. The yardstick of assessment of the policymakers on the economic front has remained the same. The Budget 2024 – 2025 outlines the vision of the government and it indicates positive economic indicators such as growth in GDP (Gross Domestic Product) of 6.5% to 7%, reduction of fiscal deficit as a percentage of GDP to 4.9%, increased Capital Spending on production and services to INR 15,01,889 crores, controlling the Revenue & Primary deficits to 1.8% and 1.4% GDP respectively, comfortable Forex Trade position equivalent to 11 months of projected imports, control of inflation through fiscal and monetary policies, buoyancy in tax and other collections, etc. A combination of the overall structure together with other criteria gives a great level of confidence for the future.
Tasks and allocations towards increasing GDP
Under the overall framework on the agenda for continuing the growth trajectory, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has set nine priorities covering different facets of the economy, such as Agriculture, Employment & Skilling, All Inclusive Human Resource Development, Manufacturing, Urban Development, Energy, Infrastructure, Research and Development and next generation reforms.
Practically speaking, all the sectors of the economy will get an equitable allocation by this approach and by this an all-inclusive, unified and integrated economic platform will be laid out throughout India.
Combined with the accelerated private sector investments in capital projects, supportive approach of banks, inflow of FDI, well developed infrastructure facilities and highly skillful and productive human resources, these programmes, upon implementation will ensure pushing up the overall GDP of the country to newer heights. The government is also determined to keep on reducing the overall debt levels which will augur well for reducing the deficits situation.
Besides, a Financial Sector Vision Document which is on the anvil will set the agenda for the next five years and guide the work of the government, regulators, financial institutions and market participants in close coordination with each other.
Changes to indirect taxes
The implementation of unified tax system through Goods and Services Tax (GST) is a success of great magnitude. It has decreased tax incidence on the common man, reduced compliance burden and logistics cost for trade and industry and enhanced revenues of the central and state governments. Further simplification, rationalization and expansion is in the pipeline.
The Budget 2024 - 2025 has made changes in the customs duties with a view to support domestic manufacturing, deepen local value addition, promote export competitiveness and simplify taxation, while keeping the interest of the general public and consumers in high esteem. Reduction of import duty is proposed for medicines and medical equipment, precious metals such as gold and platinum, besides a host of other items.
Changes to direct taxes
A major overhaul of the Direct Taxes Act 1961 will be completed in six months so as to make the Act concise, lucid and comprehendible and this exercise will reduce the disputes and litigation, bringing real relief and certainty to the taxpayers.
Under Personal Taxation, the significant changes are 1. Raising the Standard Deduction from INR 50,000 to INR 75,000 2. Deduction on Family Pension has increased from INR 15,000 to INR 25,000, 3. Changes in Tax Structure, resulting in a tax saving of INR 17,500.
The stock markets in India have seen the all-time high recently and obviously many investors might have made a fortune by the uptick in prices. Recognising this bonanza, combined with the favourable GDP percolating into corporate earnings and share prices in future, the Budget 2024 -2025 has hiked up the tax on Short Term Capital Gains with the Sale of Listed Investments from 15% to 20% and on Long Term Capital Gains from 10% to 12.5%. Listed financial assets sold after 12 months of holding will be treated as Long Term. Simultaneously, an increase in the exemption limit has been made from INR 100,000 to INR 125,000 per annum as a matter of relief.
To attract foreign capital for our development needs, the corporate tax rate on foreign companies gets reduced from 40 to 35 per cent.
Overall, Budget – 2024-2025 is a well-crafted blueprint of action, intending to take up different facets of the economy to the next level of excellence and also balancing between the challenges on hand, both internally and externally and the objectives set for achievement in future.
A V Manohar
The author is the CEO of Wisdom Business and Training Services LLC