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Decade’s first union budget focuses on uplifting agri and healthcare sectors

Mumbai/New Delhi | ByReuters
Feb 01, 2020 03:14 PM IST

India estimates economic growth this fiscal year, which ends on March 31, will slip to 5% - its weakest pace since the global financial crisis of 2008-09.

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday unveiled the budget for fiscal 2020-21, vowing to boost income of Indians and their purchasing power, in a bid to revive domestic economic growth that has slumped.

India estimates economic growth this fiscal year, which ends on March 31, will slip to 5% - its weakest pace since the global financial crisis of 2008-09.

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These are the highlights from Sitharaman’s fiscal 2020-21 budget speech:

DEFICIT

* Fiscal deficit for 2019/20 seen at 3.8% of GDP

* Fiscal deficit for 2020/21 seen at 3.5% of GDP

BORROWING

* 2020/21 net market borrowing seen at 5.36 trillion rupees ($75.42 billion)

EXPENDITURE/RECEIPTS

* Revised expenditure 2019/20 26.99 trillion rupees ($379.77 billion)

* Receipts for 2020/21 estimated at 22.46 trillion rupees ($316.03 billion)

* Expenditure for 2020/21 estimated at 30.42 trillion rupees ($428.03 billion)

* India to allocate 2.83 trillion rupees ($39.82 billion) for agriculture and allied activities

* Approves 3.6 trillion rupees ($50.65 billion) for a federal water scheme

* To allocate 993 billion rupees ($13.97 billion) for the education sector in 2020/21

* To allocate 286 billion rupees ($4.02 billion) on federal schemes for women

* Government to sell part of its holding in Life Insurance Corp

HEALTHCARE

* India to allocate 690 billion rupees ($9.7 billion) toward healthcare spending

* Taxes from medical devices to used to fund healthcare infrastructure

TRANSPORT

* India to develop 100 more airports by 2024

* India to monetize over 6,000 km of highways in 12 lots by 2024

* India to privatize at least one major port

POWER/INDUSTRY

* India to provide 273 billion rupees ($3.84 billion) for promotion of industry and commerce

* Firms operating old thermal power plants advised to shut units if emission norms not met

* India to allocate 44 billion rupees ($619.11 million) for clean air incentives in cities with over 1 million people

* India to allocate 220 billion rupees ($3.10 billion) for power and renewables

* Conventional energy meters to be replaced by prepaid smartmeters in the next three years

* India to expand national gas grid to 27,000 km

* Large solar power capacity to be set up alongside rail tracks, on land owned by Indian Railways

MANUFACTURING

* Scheme focused on encouraging manufacture of mobile phones, electronic equipment and semiconductor packaging to be introduced

* To encourage private sector to build Data Centre Parks throughout the country

* 80 billion rupees ($1.13 billion) over five years to be provided for quantum technologies and applications

* Milk processing capacity to be doubled by 2025.

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