On February 1st, 2024, Union Finance Minister, Nirmala Sitharaman presented her 6th Union Budget and 1st Interim Budget for the financial year 2024-25. The announced budget will not only impact the economy but also leave a positive mark on the start-up ecosystem. The 2024 Interim budget is focused on the growth and development of the youth, farmers, women, and businesses. This blog sums up the most significant and important announcements of the Union Budget 2024-25, which you should be aware of, as it is likely to affect your day-to-day life.
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* Fiscal deficit represents the total borrowings of the government. It’s a situation when the government spends more than their total income. This is calculated by taking the difference between total expenditure and total income. In the budget speech for 2021-22, Nirmala Sitharaman had announced that they had a vision to reduce the fiscal deficit below 4.5% by the financial year 2025-26. Keeping that in mind, in 2024-25, the government has taken an estimated target of fiscal deficit of 5.1% of the GDP.
* The government is working towards making India a fully developed country in the year 2047. To achieve this, there are many initiatives taken for the all-round development of the country.
* It has been claimed that 1 crore households will be able to obtain 300 units of free electricity every month. This is being achieved through rooftop solarization.
* PM Awas Yojana was launched in the year 2015, with the vision of providing housing for all in urban areas. Until now, the government is close to achieving the target of 3 crores houses. In the next 5 years, they have taken an estimated target of additional 2 crore houses.
* In 2023-24, Rs.10 lakh crore was invested in the development of roads and infrastructure. In 2024-25, this budget has been increased by 11.1% to Rs. 11,11,111 crores. This is 3.4% of the GDP.
* 40,000 normal railway bogies to be transformed to the standards of Vande Bharat for the convenience and safety of the travellers.
* A new scheme to be launched for strengthening the deep-tech technologies for defence purposes.
* Plan to set up more medical colleges to improve the healthcare facilities in the country. The government is planning to achieve this by making the most of the existing hospital infrastructure. A committee is being set up to make recommendations for the same.
* Government plans to encourage vaccination for girls between the ages 9-14 years to prevent cervical cancer.
* No changes have been made in the direct and indirect tax rates in FY 2024-25.
* Since 1962, there have been many non-verified and non-reconciled direct tax demands that have caused a lot of distress among taxpayers. The government is planning to withdraw such tax demands of up to Rs. 25000 for requests made until FY 2009-10 and Rs.10000 for requests made from 2010-11 to 2014-15. This initiative can benefit up to 1 crore taxpayers.
* The previous 5 years were completely focused on improving the tax-payer services. The average processing time for returns has reduced from 93 days in FY 2013-14 to only 10 days in FY 2024-25.
* The government has seen an increase in direct tax collections at the rate of 2.4 times.
* PM Mudra Yojana has successfully disbursed 43 crore loans worth 22.5 lakh crore for funding the entrepreneurial aspirations of our youth.
* 30 crore Mudra Yojana loans were given to women entrepreneurs.
Also Read: How to e-Verify Your Income Tax Return
In the announcement of union budget 2024-25, Nirmala Sitharaman mentioned that the government is working to make India completely developed by the year 2047. And the initiatives taken are not only taking us a step closer to that but also providing better opportunities for the people of India. An all-round development is observed across all industries including the financial sector. Financial institutions like Zype are contributing to this by providing instant personal loans to millions of Indians so that they can get one step closer towards achieving their aspirations.