PEAKLIFE

Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman started her budget speech in the Parliament by paying tribute to former finance minister Arun Jaitley

Delivering one of the longest speeches in six years of the Modi-led NDA government, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced reforms for both the economic and social aspects of the country with prime focus on Aspirational India, Economic Development and Caring Society.

The theme of Aspirational India focused on agriculture, irrigation and rural development, wellness, water and sanitation, education and skill development. Under Economic Development the focus on majorly on commerce and investments, infrastructure and the new economy that would be led by startups and technology-driven ecosystems. Finally, the focus of the Caring Society theme would be on women and child welfare, culture and tourism, environment and climate change.

Allocating Rs. 69,000 crores for the overall healthcare sector, Union Finance Minister also announced special courses that would be designed by Ministries of Health and Skill Development and 5% health cess to be imposed on the imports of medical devices.

According to Sushil Khaitan, CEO & Director, Purenutrition.me says, “Across the globe, one of the lowest country spending on healthcare has been in India. It was expected for India to spend about 2.5% of its GDP on healthcare by 2025, currently, the scenario is different. We only spend about 1% on it. With a growing number of communicable diseases and viruses, it is time India paid more attention to healthcare and gave it a systematic and extensive revamp.”

Khaitan adds, “While healthcare infrastructure needs a facelift, people are becoming more and more aware about their health and fitness, thanks to the hectic lifestyle in most metros. This gives space for preventive measures like nutritional supplements to become big players in the market. In the past four years, government policy changes, as well as overall global slowdown such as demonetization, GST implementation, banking crisis, etc., has affected the businesses, including nutraceuticals.”

The Finance Minister has also proposed to increase customs duty on goods like automobile components which are also being made in India and the government of India would also promote the export of automobile components.

Sqn.Ldr. Prerana Chaturvedi, CEO & ED, Evolet- Rissala Electric Motors Pvt Ltd says, “The long-term benefits of EVs are multi-fold still the relatively higher cost of acquisition of an EV is a bottleneck in its adoption. Unarguably, lowering the GST on electric vehicles from 12% to 5% has benefited electric vehicle manufacturers. However, GST on raw materials is still a concern for manufacturers in addition to import duty on technologies for e-drivetrain and other EV related products. The government needs to do more to support the localization of battery technology that power electric vehicles. Lithium-Ion Batteries that form close to 40% of the cost of an electric vehicle attract GST of 18%.”

Chaturveri also adds, “The government should consider reducing the GST rate and encouraging companies to set up battery manufacturing plants in the country through tax exemptions. For startups, it will be a great deal if the government does some kind of tie-ups for Li-ion cells companies, Electronics parts companies which can reduce down the cost and MOQ for the raw materials.”

Focusing on the importance of culture and tourism, the Finance Minister proposed more Tejas like trains connecting iconic tourist destinations. The Budget 2020-21 allocates Rs 2,500 crore for tourism promotion, Rs 3,150 crore has been proposed for the Ministry of Culture.

Rakshit Desai, Managing Director, FCM Travel Solutions says, “The tourism industry is a crucial contributor to India’s GDP and we appreciate that the Union Budget 2020-21 presented today by the honorable Finance Minister Niramala Sitharaman reflects a potential for growth in domestic and inbound tourism. We see a clear focus on revitalizing the aviation and tourism sector which will also boost employment in the industry. Several initiatives like enhancing the role of AI and machine learning will make the industry more technologically competent and help us become future ready.”

Desai also adds, “Allocation of Rs 3,100 crore to Cultural Ministry for developing five archaeological sites as iconic sites with on-site museums along with a tribal museum in Ranchi are laudable and will impact the tourism industry positively in the coming years. Thankfully tourism is now being viewed as an important growth driver of the economy.”

On the allocation of Rs 2,500 crore for the tourism sector, Roop Pratap Choudhary, Managing Director, Noor Mahal, “This budget is certainly a booster for the promotion of India’s heritage, tourism, and rich cultural diversity. This will provide flourishing ground for Hospitality Sector. We welcome the move of the Finance Minister towards
the creation of a robust infrastructure by announcing the development of more than 100 airports till the year 2025.”

Choudhary adds “This will allow the new and offbeat destinations to emerge and grow at a faster rate. Announcing Rakhigarhi, Haryana amongst the five archaeological sites with on-site museums would also put Haryana now on the map of the international travelers. This will further strengthen Haryana’s position on both the Inbound and Outbound tourism stage. Planned electrification of 27,000 km of tracks and more Tejas like trains on the cards to connect iconic destinations will certainly inspire new tourism concepts and avenues”.