Dear Readers,
“The best way to predict the future is to create it,” famously said Peter Drucker, renowned management consultant and author.
Along the same lines, how do you see India in 2047, the centenary year of Independence? What changes would you like to see by then? Take a break and think.
Should there be only electric and self-driving cars? Should all major cities have subway trains? Should there be bullet trains between major cities? I think digital proliferation would reach its advanced level and artificial intelligence (AI) would overtake mundane tasks. Quantum computers will work. We have to look crystal clear to find how the world, and specifically India would look more than 23 years down the line. What suddenly took me to the future is the government’s vision for 2047 — Viksit Bharat.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, in her interim budget speech on Thursday, presented a solid vision for a developed nation.
Government’s vision for Viksit Bharat
“We are working to make India a ‘Viksit Bharat’ by 2047. To achieve that goal, we need to improve people’s capacity and empower them,” the finance minister said.
The government’s vision for Viksit Bharat is a prosperous Bharat in harmony with nature, modern infrastructure and opportunities for all citizens.
The government believes that the next five years will be years of unprecedented development and the golden moments to realize the dream of a developed India @2047. The trinity of demography, democracy and diversity will play a pivotal role. Sky is the limit because there is no shortage of opportunities.
The government is already taking steps towards its vision as it has created four pillars for Viksit Bharat.
It has made a provision of Rs 75,000 crore for 50-year interest-free loans to states to support milestone-linked reforms of states, as part of its vision towards turning a developed nation.
The Prime Minister also spoke about the 2047 target last month and the government hopes to present the vision in a full Budget in June.
The 2024 Budget
Despite general elections around the corner, the finance minister did not choose the path of populism but focused on fiscal consolidation.
The Finance Minister has set the revised revenue estimate at Rs 30 lakh crore, which means by March 2024-end, it expects to receive Rs 30 lakh crore through direct and indirect taxes, against the expectation of Rs 27 lakh crore initially. of the year in the budget estimates. This is due to tax buoyancy, strong growth momentum and formalization in the economy. Higher revenues helped the finance minister bring down the fiscal deficit to 5.8 percent for FY24 and peg it at 5.1 percent for next year, which is a major achievement. This means that the government is successfully bridging the gap between what it earns as revenues and what it spends.
In a kind of double bonanza, the FM has also decided to boost its capital expenditure this year while successfully keeping the fiscal deficit under wraps.
It plans to spend Rs 11.1 lakh crore on capital expenditure in an election year, which is a big increase over the expenditure of Rs 10 lakh crore this fiscal. Remember, higher capital expenditure has a multiplier effect on economic growth and job creation.
Moving Forward
There are many segments where India is gaining a foothold. While the FM highlighted various schemes like PMJDY, PM Swanidhi, Har Ghar Jal, and Elektron for everything, she also highlighted India’s achievements in sports saying that the country has 86 Chess Grand Masters now.
Overall, I found it very impressive that the government is thinking about the next 23 years. It may be easy to think about the next 1-2 years, but long-term vision and plans need efforts and strength.
While we will need advanced developments and modern infrastructure in 2047, let us not forget that we will need solutions to growing health problems, unpredictable medical conditions and climate change. In today’s digital world, the biggest irony is that food and grocery delivery boys can get there faster but not ambulances. We should use artificial intelligence but we should not have to face a situation to use artificial oxygen.
Well, apart from Budget one of the major news of the week in the BFSI world was the Reserve Bank of India banning Paytm Payments Bank from onboarding customers.
Click here for our Budget 2024 coverage
1. Union Budget 2024: 5 key Takeaways from the Interim Budget
2. Budget 2024 Highlights: Key announcements from FM Sitharaman’s Interim Budget
3. Union Budget: 2024-25 estimates reveal significant changes in spending priority
4. How will the Finance Minister’s PMAY-G announcement boost the home loan market?
5. Launch new scheme to boost deep technology, set corpus of Rs 1 lakh cr says FM Sitharaman
6. Budget 2024: FM optimistic about women empowerment through entrepreneurship, ‘Lakhpati Didi’ schemes
7. Government has prioritized fiscal prudence over populist spending, Economists say
Click here for our Paytm coverage.
1. RBI bans Paytm Payment Bank from entering customers due to non-compliance issues
2. Paytm Payments Bank sees Rs 300-500 cr impact on EBITDA after RBI ban
3. RBI action “speed”, in talks with other banks to transfer payments banking business: Vijay Shekhar Sharma
4. Jefferies ‘downgrades’ Paytm, says RBI restriction to hit lending; halves price target to Rs 500
Happy Reading.
Amol Dethe
Editor
ETBFSI