Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman is set to hold pre-budget consultations with industry chambers, farmer's associations, and state finance ministers to prepare the full budget for the fiscal year 2024-25. Key areas to focus on during the new adoption of the budget include infrastructure development, agriculture, green growth, railways, youth and women empowerment, fiscal consolidation, and continued capital expenditure.
After the interim budget is delivered on 1 February 2024, the complete budget for the following year will be presented in late July. The meeting with India Inc. is scheduled for Thursday while the consultations with farmer associations will be held on Friday. The Finance Minister will meet state finance ministers in New Delhi for consultations on the GST Council meeting and the Union government's budget for 108 Centrally Sponsored Schemes (CSS), with a budget of Rs 5.01 lakh crore for FY 2024-25 and Rs 4.76 lakh crore for FY 2023-24. Discussions aim to expedite the implementation of these schemes along with gaining a broader view of issues. The extensive budget preparation has been completed as part of the government's 100-day agenda, which will be incorporated into the budget.
This year's budget is expected to prioritize agriculture and rural development, focusing on women's self-help groups. The economy experienced an 8.2 per cent growth in 2023-24, with inflation below 5 per cent. The Indian government plans to continue large infrastructure investments, extend the production-linked incentive scheme, and promote labor-intensive MSMEs. The fiscal deficit has been reduced from 9 per cent of GDP to 5.1 per cent from 2024-25, strengthening the economy. S&P Global Rating has raised India's sovereign rating outlook to 'positive'.
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