New Delhi: Union Minister Hardeep Puri termed the interim Budget a “ten-year report card” of the Union Government. “This is an interim budget, a vote on account. The government has come with a ten-year report card showing that it put out a sterling performance in every front,” Mr Puri told NDTV.
Calling the last budget before the general elections "ambitious", he said: “But more than anything, the existing schemes get added up. We had four crore beneficiaries under the PM housing scheme, today they have added another two crores. If this is not ambition in an interim budget then what is? They have another one crore to the target of two crore lakhpati didis.”
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, while presenting her sixth budget in a row, said that the government would increase housing in the next five years, expand free electricity and improve medical care. She said another two crore houses will be constructed under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (Gramin) in the next five years. The PMAY(G) is a social welfare programme to provide housing for the rural poor in the country.
"Despite the challenges due to COVID-19, the implementation of the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (Gramin) continued, and we are close to achieving the target of three crore houses," she said, adding, "Two crore more houses will be taken up in the next five years to meet the requirement arising from the increase in the number of families".
Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched the scheme in 2015 with the goal of "Housing for All."
The Budget also mentioned a to-be-launched housing scheme for the "deserving sections" of the middle class that would benefit those "living in rented houses or slums or chawls or unauthorised colonies to buy or build their own houses."
“I was delighted. It is going to be an ambitious scheme. I think we should wait for the rollout to happen. But, I think it's going to be a plus plus. This needs to be fleshed out,” said Mr Puri
Nirmala Sitharaman, during her 56-minute Budget speech, also enhanced the target of 'Lakhpati Didi' scheme from two crore to three crore, a step aimed at empowering women in the rural areas. "83 lakh SHGs (self-help groups) with nine crore women are transforming the rural socio-economic landscape with empowerment and self-reliance. Buoyed by the success, it has been decided to enhance the target of lakhpati didi from 2 crore to 3 crore," she informed.
The Lakhpati Didi initiative, aimed at training women in self-help groups so that they can earn a sustainable income of at least Rs 1 lakh per annum per household - was announced by PM Modi from the ramparts of Red Fort in his Independence Day address last year.
India will reduce its budget gap sharply in 2024-25 to 5.1% of gross domestic product (GDP), Nirmala Sitharaman told parliament as she presented the Budget, while revising the current fiscal year's gap lower by 10 basis points to 5.8%.
No change was proposed in the tax rates in the interim budget with Ns Sitharaman announcing that the government will form a high-powered committee for an extensive consideration of the challenges arising from the fast population and that it will present a white paper on the economic performance of 10 years of BJP-led government compared to previous 10 years of Congress-led UPA government.