New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi gave a shout-out to his colleague Nirmala Sitharaman after she presented the last Budget of this government on Thursday, saying it may be an Interim Budget but was “inclusive and innovative”.
Modi said the Budget had the “confidence of continuity”, adding, “This Budget will empower the four pillars of ‘Viksit Bharat’ — youth, poor, women and farmers. This Budget gives the guarantee of making India developed by 2047.”
The PM said the Budget accommodates the dreams and aspirations of the country’s youth. “Two important decisions have been made. Rs 1 lakh crore fund will be set up for research and innovation. Start-ups will also get tax benefits,” he said.
He said the Budget had reined in fiscal deficit yet boosted capital expenditure to a historic high of Rs 11,11,111 crore. “If we speak the languages of economists, this is a ‘sweet spot’. With this, besides building India’s modern infrastructure of the 21st century, innumerable new job opportunities for the youth will be created,” Modi added.
He lauded the boost given to the Railways, saying the government continued to strive on setting new goals. “This Budget stresses on the empowerment of the poor and the middle class… and creating new employment opportunities for them. It has been announced to construct 2 crore more houses for the poor. We aim to have three crore ‘Lakhpati Didis’ now. ASHA and Anganwadi workers will also get the benefit of the Ayushman Bharat scheme,” Modi stressed on some of the salient points of the interim Budget.
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