Budget 2018: Business leaders give thumbs up to Budget

Indore: Though they rued a general neglect of big companies, experts and business leaders here still gave thumbs up to Union Budget-2018-19 saying that Finance Minister Arun Jaitley gave a push to agriculture, relief to MSME and money to healthcare.

“We thought that it would be an election budget but the FM surprised one and all.” That was a common view of the experts at a budget viewing session organised by Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) at Brilliant Convention Centre on Thursday.

The session was aimed at providing a platform to discussion and analyzing implications of the Union budget proposals from different groups and assess its effect on economy.

Experts from different sectors expressed their views on the Budget session, which was attended by nearly 100 representatives from diverse fields.

Moderating the session, Praveen Agarwal, convenor, CII Madhya Pradesh State Panel on Economics and Taxation termed the budget ‘quiet balanced’. Giving seven out of 10 marks to the budget, he said “There is something for everyone in the budget. The FM has proposed huge allocation for infrastructure development which is good for economy boost. Focus on healthcare and agriculture is also commendable.”

Economist Ganesh Kawadia awarded six out of 10 marks to the budget saying that it’s neither populist nor growth-oriented. “The good part is that focus has been laid on growth of agriculture and agro marketing besides introduction of standard deduction of Rs 40,000 for salaried employees and interest income exemption of Rs 50000 for senior citizen. Big infrastructure for railways and airport will boost tourism.”

Highlighting negative aspects, he said that poor target of disinvestment will not help PSUs to grow. “Also, higher fiscal deficit and revenue deficit are cause of concern for public investments.”

Applauding the budget, Swan Finance Ltd director BP Inani said that the budget is impressive and economy oriented. He gave eight out of 10 marks to the budget saying that it has something to everyone. “For farmers, the FM announced an increase of minimum support price for crops this rabi season to 1.5 times of production costs. “For salaried employees, standard deduction of Rs 40000 whereas exemption on interest income of Rs 50000 to senior citizens are among many welcome steps,” he said adding that the budget is neutral for higher middle class.  He also welcomed the government’s move of announcing cryptocurrencies as legal tender and its exploring use of blockchain technology proactively for ushering in digital economy.

VE Commercial Vehicles (Finance) head Nitin Nagda said that there was no good news for automobile sector in the budget. “The whole exercise of the government remained focused on wooing farmers, poor people and salaried people. However, overall the budget is good as it tries to improve economy and generate new jobs. I give seven out of 10 marks to the budget.”