New Delhi: Inclusive development and the National Democratic Alliance’s (NDA) growth agenda for the future have emerged as the central theme of finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman’s interim budget for FY25.
Social justice and inclusive growth will be an effective and necessary governance model for the NDA government, Sitharaman said in her speech, calling it secularism in action.
The minister said 250 million people have come out of ‘multidimensional poverty’ in the last 10 years, 7.8 million street vendors have received credit assistance and crop insurance is given to 40 million farmers under the PM Fasal Bima Yojana.
Mint reported on 1 February that Sitharaman’s budget speech will capture both the achievements and the goals of the NDA government, highlighting inclusive and all-round development as a guiding principle.
“Our government’s efforts are now getting synergized with energy and passion of such empowered people. This is truly elevating them from poverty,” Sitharaman said, referring to people who have come out of multidimensional poverty, measured in terms of health, education and standard of living.
“Previously, social justice was mostly a political slogan. For our government, social justice is an effective and necessary governance model. The saturation approach of covering all eligible people is the true and comprehensive achievement of social justice. This is secularism in action, reduces corruption, and prevents nepotism,” Sitharaman said.
She also said there is transparency and assurance that benefits are delivered to all eligible people. “The resources are distributed fairly. All, regardless of their social standing, get access to opportunities. We are addressing systemic inequalities that had plagued our society. We focus on outcomes and not on outlays so that the socio-economic transformation is achieved,” Sitharaman said.
She said that the NDA government’s vision of a developed country was one that has modern infrastructure and gives opportunities so that all citizens and all regions reach their potential.
“The next five years will be years of unprecedented development, and golden moments to realize the dream of developed India in 2047,” the minister said. The NDA government will adopt economic policies that foster growth, facilitate inclusive and sustainable development, improve productivity and create opportunities for all. She explained that those policies will contribute to generation of resources to power investments. The government will take up next generation reforms and build consensus with the states and stakeholders for effective implementation.
The government will ensure timely and adequate finance, technology and training for small businesses to grow and compete globally. “Orienting the regulatory environment to facilitate their growth will be an important element of this policy mix,” the minister said, adding that the government’s policies will sustain high and more resource-efficient economic growth.
“For meeting the investment needs, our government will prepare the financial sector in terms of size, capacity, skills and regulatory framework,” Sitharaman said.
Rahul Jain, managing partner at BCG India, said that as expected, the interim budget has been able to build confidence about the progress of the country and has set the tone for the road map for becoming a developed nation. “The policy intent has been made clear with emphasis on building robust ecosystems for inclusive growth of citizens. Sabka Saath Sabka Vikas continues to be the focal theme of the government and the announcements reflect its commitment to that goal without compromising fiscal discipline. Focus on infrastructure and research highlight the intent of the government to foster a growth-oriented mindset,” he said.
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Published: 01 Feb 2024, 04:33 PM IST