India Inc hopeful of out-of-box steps to boost growth in Budget

New Delhi, January 31

The Economic Survey 2022-23 tabled in Parliament on Tuesday presents a realistic assessment of India’s economy, industry bodies said, while expressing hope for out-of-box measures to boost growth and consumption in the upcoming Union Budget.

Lay thrust on capital expenditure

We are hopeful that the Union Budget will continue to lay major thrust on capex, including physical, digital as well as social infrastructure; this will help crowd-in private investments, which has already started to show an uptick. Subhrakant Panda, President, FICCI

India’s economy is projected to slow to 6.5% in the fiscal year starting April but will remain the fastest growing major economy in the world as it fared better in dealing with the extraordinary set of challenges the globe has faced, said the Survey. Chandrajit Banerjee, Director General, CII, said the Survey effectively analyses and captures the prevailing trends across all major sectors of the economy which could form a pivot for deliberations on the future course of the economy.

“CII hopes that some of the perceptions and ideas in the survey would find a place in the Union Budget to be presented tomorrow,” he added.

Subhrakant Panda, president, Ficci, said to ensure that the growth momentum continues, continuous support will be needed throughout the year from the government. “We are hopeful that the Union Budget will continue to lay major thrust on capex, including physical, digital as well as social infrastructure; this will help crowd-in private investments, which has already started to show an uptick,” he added.

Assocham Secretary General Deepak Sood said the Economic Survey is a realistic assessment of the Indian economy listing out challenges and opportunities in the context of a difficult global economy marked by high inflation, impact of Ukraine-Russia war and stringent monetary tightening by the major central banks.

He added that the chamber is expecting out-of-box measures to boost growth and consumption in the Union Budget to be unveiled by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Wednesday.