The Narendra Modi government's last full Budget before the 2024 General Elections mixed pragmatism with prudence, deciding to stick to infrastructure development and demand spike to boost growth.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman focused on the construction of roads, highways, and railway lines by increasing
capital expenditure allocation. Moreover, with adjustments to the new income tax system, the middle class has received some respite, making it quite evident that the government intends to switch from the old system to the new one.
In an exclusive interview with Rahul Joshi Group Editor-In-Chief of Network18, the Finance Minister credited the people of India for keeping pace with the government with respect to the fast pace of decision-making enforced because of the Russia-Ukraine war and the COVID-19 pandemic fallouts.
The Finance Minister also said that the push for
improving tourism in the Budget should augre well for the Indian economy as a whole as it will bring foreign inflows.
India will also pay more heed to using women power in rural India to fast-track the economy's growth, according to Sitharaman.
FM On Adani Rout
The Finance Minister expressed confidence in the Indian regulatory framework to handle the
Adani stock rout in the best way possible.
She said that LIC and SBI have already come out and said that their exposure is within the permissible limits.
"The Indian banking system is at a comfortable level. The regulators are very stringent about governance and have kept the market in prime condition," she said.
For ball-by-ball coverage of the exclusive interview on the go, click here (Edited by : Abhishek Jha)
First Published: Feb 3, 2023 2:58 PM IST
