The Union Budget 2022-23 tabled in the Parliament by the Union Minister for Finance & Corporate Affairs Nirmala Sitharaman seeks to complement macro-economic level growth with a focus on micro-economic level all-inclusive welfare. Team Taazakhabar News reached out to people across the country to know their views about the budget. Here’s what a cross-section of people from the salaried and business class had to say:
Sohinder Gill, Director General, Society of Manufacturers of Electric Vehicles (SMEV)
We welcome the measures announced by the Finance Minister, today. The budget for 2022–23 gives a huge impetus to the electric vehicle (EV) industry. Introducing the battery swapping policy and recognizing battery or energy as a service will help to develop EV infrastructure and increase the use of EVs in public transportation. It would motivate businesses engaged in delivery and ride aggregation businesses to incorporate EVs into their fleet. It will create new avenues for companies to venture into the business of battery swapping. Additionally, creating special clean zones will further accelerate the adoption of EVs and spread awareness amongst the citizens. The move will benefit the whole segment, i.e E2W, E3W, E-cars, and buses.
The budget also provides attention to the need for skilled resources in the industry. Introducing new skill programs in ITI will bridge the skill gap that currently exists in the industry. The industry would be happy to work with the government to devise customized courses to meet the demands of the EV industry. Overall, the budget aims at strengthening the whole ecosystem of the EV industry, which will spur the demand for green vehicles.
Akhil Handa, Chief Digital Officer, Bank of Baroda
RBI to issue a digital rupee in FY23 using blockchain technology is the first step towards the formalization of blockchain technology in banking and finance. CBDC opens up enormous possibilities for innovation. Glad the Government is taking a measured view of the same. Further, from 100 aspirational districts to 75 digital banking units, these government programmes will provide the necessary focus to deliver banking products and services in the remotest areas.
The digital economy is growing rapidly. All parts of the economy including commerce, financing, logistics need next-generation solutions. The Government’s focus on training human capital and launching courses in this direction is very welcome. This will also help in reskilling the human capital for the new generation economy
Alok Dubey, Chief Financial Officer, Acer India
The Union Budget showcases the government’s initiative towards Digital Transformation. From announcing a Digital University, for online learning to high-quality e-content across languages will enable the youth to skill, upskill and reskill themselves. These programs under digital learning and the connectivity expansion will further strengthen the availability and accessibility of the internet in rural areas.
With Govt infrastructure spending push, we are likely to see more employment and growth opportunities and enhanced private sector investment in manufacturing. We are confident that the exemption of duty on parts of select electronic items will further boost the domestic manufacturing of electronics goods under the PLI scheme. Overall, the Union Budget 2022-23 is a promising budget and a step forward towards ‘Aatmanirbhar Bharat’.
Dr Alok Roy, Member, FICCI, Health Services Committee & Chairman Medica Group of Hospitals
India Inc. and especially the Healthcare industry which has been battling the COVID-19 pandemic for the last 2 years was expecting more investment in public health and healthcare infrastructure from this year’s union budget. The budget has just focused on mental health and the digitization of the healthcare sector. The very fact that Government has focused on digital healthcare shows that finally healthcare sector is being considered as the prerequisite to ensure the economic well-being of the country. Budget 22-23 seems very disappointing for the healthcare sector. India’s growth is estimated to be at 9.27 per cent and healthcare will play a major role in the boost. Strengthening of health infrastructure, speedy vaccination programme implementation has strengthened the Indian healthcare system. The decision to start an open platform for the national digital health ecosystem is a welcome move. The emphasis to roll out digital registries of health providers, health facilities, unique identity consent framework and universal access to health facilities will add more value to Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission. We the healthcare providers heartily welcome the Government’s focus on mental health issues as this has set an alarm across age groups post the COVID pandemic. The announcement of launching the national tele-mental health program which will include a network of 23 telemedicine mental health centres of excellence is a much appreciative move that the government has decided.
It was expected the government to look at increasing the healthcare expenditure above 2.5 per cent of the GDP but there was not adequate attention paid to it. Although there had been a rise of 137% allocation in the healthcare sector last year much was fulfilled in reality by the government. Overall, the proposals made in Budget 22-23, should have made quality healthcare accessible and affordable. The government should have focused more on primary healthcare investment and made the Healthcare system as National Priority’ status, as was done for the IT sector.
G. Srinivasan, CEO, Athulya, Chennai
The Union Budget 2022 is forward-looking with an emphasis on mental healthcare. They have taken into consideration the increasing cases of mental health problems and have made provisions to offer quality counselling and care for people across all age groups. It will be beneficial to most of our elderly population post the pandemic. Another progressive move by the government is the launch of the DESH-Stack e-portal for skilling and reskilling citizens. This will address the current need to enhance the skills of existing healthcare workers. The continuous development programs will be a game-changer across all sectors, facilitating knowledge creation for people by grooming them to fit the industry requirements, eventually opening up greater employment opportunities.
Prof. Hema Swamy, Assistant Professor, Finance at Great Lakes Institute of Management, Chennai
While energy-efficient trains like Vande Bharat or ‘eco-friendly’ housing schemes are welcome, it is important to educate, support and improve sustainable lifestyles in as many spheres as possible. This could be through eco-friendly educational initiatives through television like growing your food or water conservation measures aimed at school children, the allocation for urban kitchen gardens in PM housing schemes and government hospitals and other such micro-level interventions that can facilitate the conscious adoption of a sustainable lifestyle.
