2024-07-24 00:44:32
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman today presented the first budget of the third term of the Modi government. In the recent general elections, the BJP failed to get a majority on its own and had to take the support of allies to form the government. Therefore, today when Sitharaman stood in the Lok Sabha to present the full budget for the financial year 2024-25, the tide of expectations was at its peak. But many sections were disappointed in it.
No plan to reduce unemployment
Unemployment is the biggest challenge for India, which is growing at the fastest pace in the world. India is among those countries where the rate of unemployment is the highest. The country’s economy is growing rapidly but we have failed to create jobs accordingly. But in the budget presented today, no special announcement has been made to deal with the growing unemployment problem. Although three schemes have been announced under employment related incentives, but this is insufficient for the growing army of unemployed.
There is no way to increase the income of farmers
An amount of Rs 1.52 lakh crore has been announced in the budget for agriculture and related sectors. But despite the continuous demand of farmers, no announcement has been made in the budget regarding Minimum Support Price (MSP). Also, the amount of PM Kisan i.e. Kisan Samman Nidhi has not been increased. It was believed that the government could double this amount. Currently, Rs 6,000 is given annually under this scheme.
No relief for the middle class
Taxpayers had huge expectations from this budget. Especially the middle class, which pays the most taxes and spends the most, has not been given much relief. In the new tax regime, the standard deduction has been increased from Rs 50,000 to Rs 75,000. Also, the tax slab has been changed in the new tax regime. The Finance Minister claims that this will save up to Rs 17,500 annually for those earning more than Rs 10 lakh. But no changes have been made in the old tax regime.
No future vision for rail infra
Recently, the railways have faced many major accidents. In June last year, there were rail accidents in Odisha, last month on the Bengal and Bihar border and recently near Gonda in Uttar Pradesh. Therefore, it was believed that the budget would focus on improving the infrastructure of the railways. But no such announcement was made in the budget. Also, no announcement was made about Vande Bharat, Amrit Bharat and Bullet Train.
Stock market’s hopes were also shattered
The stock market had high expectations from this budget. Investors were especially hoping to make the capital gains tax practical. But the budget gave them a big shock. Under the capital gains tax, long term capital gains have been increased by 2.5% to 12%. Similarly, short term capital gains tax (STCG) on some selected assets has been increased to 20%. This led to a huge decline in the market.