Interim Budget: Nothing spectacular but reflects confidence of BJP government ahead of general election

Tribune Web Desk

Vibha Sharma

Chandigarh, February 1

As expected, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sithraman made no spectacular announcement in her interim Budget ahead of the general election. Her statement that “in the full budget in July, our government will present a detailed roadmap for our pursuit of Viksit Bharat” said it all.

It was a message not just by the FM but a government confident of returning to power in the upcoming general election, experts said, adding that the ruling BJP is far more confident of winning in 2024 than it was in 2019. “The FM reflected the confidence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Plus, she also did not queer the pitch for the next FM who may make some big announcements in the full Budget,” they added.

With India going to the Lok Sabha election in a couple of months, the FM made no major announcements, including no changes in the income tax rates.

A straight Budget shows the political confidence otherwise it is “highly uncharacteristic of the government not to use the leverage. The impression is that the Opposition is in a disarray and there is no need for disruption or populism. In fact, Sitharaman’s 2024-25 interim Budget speech was her shortest-ever speech so far.

Key political takeaways 

Whether the mention of PM’s focus on “uplift of four major castes—‘Garib’ (poor), ‘Mahilayen’ (women), ‘Yuva’ (youth) and ‘Annadata’(farmer)—or the announcement of a ‘white paper’, the BJP-led NDA government’s political message was clear.

Sitharaman said the government is working with an approach to development that is all-round, all-pervasive and all-inclusive, covering all castes and people at all levels.

“Previously, social justice was mostly a political slogan. For our government, social justice is an effective and necessary governance model. The saturation approach of covering all eligible people is the true and comprehensive achievement of social justice. This is secularism in action, reduces corruption, and prevents nepotism.

“There is transparency and assurance that benefits are delivered to all eligible people. The resources are distributed fairly. All, regardless of their social standing, get access to opportunities. We are addressing systemic inequalities that had plagued our society. We focus on outcomes and not on outlays so that the socio-economic transformation is achieved,” she said.

Lakhpati Didi—the eye-catcher

The eye-catcher in an otherwise low-key Budget was the announcement on ‘Lakhpati Didi’.  

Sitharaman said, “As many as 83 lakh SHGs with nine crore women are transforming the rural socio-economic landscape with empowerment and self-reliance and their success has assisted nearly one crore women to become Lakhpati Didi already”.

“They are an inspiration to others. Their achievements will be recognised through honouring them. Buoyed by the success, it has been decided to enhance the target for Lakhpati Didi from 
2 crore to 3 crore.”

White paper to counter   

For the government under attack over issues related to jobs, economy, etc, the announcement of a white paper appears to be a counter.  

Sitharaman said that in 2014 there was a responsibility to mend the economy and put governance systems in order. The need of the hour was to “attract investments; build support to the much-needed reforms and give hope to the people” and the “government succeeded with a strong belief of ‘nation-first’”.

“The crisis of those years has been overcome, and the economy has been put firmly on a high sustainable growth path with all-round development. It is now appropriate to look at where we were then till 2014 and where we are now, only for the purpose of drawing lessons from the mismanagement of those years. The government will lay a White Paper on the table of the House.”

Basically, a white paper is “persuasive, authoritative, in-depth report on a specific topic that presents a problem and provides a solution”.  It is a report about a complex issue that helps readers to understand it and make a decision, say experts.

Vote on account

When it is an election year, the government does not present a full-fledged Budget for the complete year. Instead, it presents the interim Budget or a vote on account as it is also called.

Basically, the vote on account is an advance grant to the government to cover expenditure until the new financial year begins. It contains a detailed account by the government of expenses to be incurred and money to be earned through taxes till the full Budget that gives it rights till the end of the FY.

Normally and traditionally, an interim Budget is presented without any mega announcements or benefits to the people. Though the government is expected to be prudent, at times some populist measures are also added.

A fact also is that most of the interim budgets presented by various governments all these years have seen no major tax changes or new schemes, a reason why it was not correct to have too many expectations this time also. Besides, any disruptive move or attempt to boost consumption could have been counter-productive, adding to inflation or affecting efforts to control prices. 

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