Union Budget 2024-25: Complete Budget Analysis

The Budget 2024-25 outlines a total expenditure of ₹48.21 lakh crore and receipts (excluding borrowings) of ₹32.07 lakh crore, with net tax receipts estimated at ₹25.83 lakh crore. The fiscal deficit is projected at 4.9% of GDP. Key initiatives under the “Viksit Bharat” theme include developing twelve industrial parks, providing internships for 1 crore youth in top companies, promoting rental housing with dormitory-type accommodations for industrial workers, and setting up Bharat Small Reactors for energy security. These efforts aim to boost economic opportunities, support youth employment, enhance housing, and secure clean energy sources.

Key Features of Budget 2024-2025

Budget Theme

• Roadmap for the pursuit of ‘Viksit Bharat’.

Focus on four major groups:

• Mahilayen (Women)
• Garib (Poor)
• Yuva (Youth)
• Annadata (Farmer)

The Union Budget 2024-2025 for India focuses on employment, skilling, MSMEs, and the middle class.

Key Financial Details for 2024-25

Total Receipts

• Total Receipts (excluding borrowings): ₹32.07 lakh crore

Total Expenditure

• Total Expenditure: ₹48.21 lakh crore

Net Tax Receipts

• Net Tax Receipts: ₹25.83 lakh crore

Fiscal Deficit

• Fiscal Deficit: Estimated at 4.9% of GDP

Financial Allocations

Expenditures:

• Interest Payments: 19%
• Central Sector Schemes (excluding capital outlay on Defence and Subsidy): 16%
• Subsidies: 6%
• Defence: 8%
• Other Expenditure: 9%
• Centrally Sponsored Schemes: 8%
• Finance Commission and other transfers: 9%
• States’ share of Taxes and Duties: 21%
• Pensions: 4%

Revenues:

• Non-Tax Receipts: 9%
• Non-Debt Capital Receipts: 1%
• Customs: 4%
• Corporation Tax: 17%
• GST & other taxes: 18%
• Union Excise Duties: 5%
• Income Tax: 19%
• Borrowing and Other Liabilities: 27%

Receipts (in ₹ Lakh Crore)

Revenue Receipts:

• 2022-23 (Actuals): 23.8
• 2023-24 (BE): 26.3
• 2023-24 (RE): 27.0
• 2024-25 (BE): 31.3

Capital Receipts:

• 2022-23 (Actuals): 18.1
• 2023-24 (BE): 18.7
• 2023-24 (RE): 17.9
• 2024-25 (BE): 16.9

Expenditure (in ₹ Lakh Crore)

Revenue Expenditure:

• 2022-23 (Actuals): 34.5
• 2023-24 (BE): 35.0
• 2023-24 (RE): 35.4
• 2024-25 (BE): 37.1

Effective Capital Expenditure:

• 2022-23 (Actuals): 10.5
• 2023-24 (BE): 13.7
• 2023-24 (RE): 12.7
• 2024-25 (BE): 15.0

Infrastructure

Long-term Loans:

• ₹1.5 lakh crore as long-term interest-free loans to states.

Overall Infrastructure Investment:

• ₹11,11,111 crore (11.11 Lakh Crore) allocation for infrastructure (3.4% of GDP).

Expenditure on Major Items (in ₹ Crore)

• Ministry of Road Transport and Highways: 2,65,808
• Defence: 6.22 lakh crore allocated to MoD, highest among Ministries, in Regular Union Budget 2024-25; 4.79% higher than FY 2023-24.
• Energy: 1,51,851
• Agriculture and Allied Activities: 1,51,851
• Home Affairs: 1,50,983
• Education: 1,25,638
• IT and Telecom: 1,16,342
• Health: 89,287
• Rural Development: 68,769
• Social Welfare: 56,501
• Commerce & Industry: 47,559
• Railway: 2,78,500 crore

Allocation to Major Schemes (in ₹ Crore)

MGNREGA:

• 2023-24(BE): 86,000
• 2024-25(BE): 60,000

Research and Development Projects:

• 2023-24(BE): 1,200
• 2024-25(BE): 840

Nuclear Power Projects:

• 2023-24(BE): 2,228
• 2024-25(BE): 442

PLI for Pharmaceutical Industry:

• 2023-24(BE): 2,143
• 2024-25(BE): 1,200

Solar Power (Grid):

• 2023-24(BE): 10,000
• 2024-25(BE): 4,970

Development of Semiconductors and Display Manufacturing:

• 2023-24(BE): 6,903
• 2024-25(BE): 3,000

Lines of Credit under IDEA Scheme:

• 2023-24(BE): 1,300
• 2024-25(BE): 3,849

Direct Benefit Transfer – LPG:

• 2023-24(BE): 1,500
• 2024-25(BE): 180

Agriculture

Vegetable Production & Supply Chain:

• Promotion of FPOs, cooperatives, and startups for vegetable supply chains.

Release of New Varieties:

• 109 new high-yielding and climate-resilient varieties of 32 crops.

National Cooperation Policy:

• Systematic development of the cooperative sector.

Atmanirbharta in Oil Seeds:

• Focus on mustard, groundnut, sesame, soybean, and sunflower.

Transforming Agriculture Research:

• Comprehensive review to raise productivity and develop climate-resilient varieties.

Natural Farming:

• Initiation of 1 crore farmers into natural farming with support for certification and branding.
• Establishment of 10,000 bio-input resource centers.

Shrimp Production & Export:

• Financing for shrimp farming, processing, and export through NABARD.

Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI):

• Coverage of farmers and their lands within 3 years.
• Digital crop survey in 400 districts.
• Issuance of Jan Samarth-based Kisan Credit Cards.

Employment & Skilling

Women Workforce Participation:

• Setting up of working women hostels and creches.

Incentives for New Entrants:

• One-month wage up to ₹15,000 for new formal sector entrants, benefiting 210 lakh youth.

EPFO Contribution Incentives:

• Incentives for first-time employees and employers for EPFO contributions over 4 years, benefiting 30 lakh youth.
• Government reimbursement of EPFO contributions up to ₹3000/month for 2 years for new hires, generating 50 lakh jobs.

Education Loans:

• Loans up to ₹7.5 lakh with government guarantee, helping 25,000 students annually.
• Financial support for loans up to ₹10 lakh for higher education in domestic institutions.
• Direct e-vouchers to 1 lakh students annually.
• Annual interest subvention of 3%.

Skilling Program:

• Skilling of 20 lakh youth over 5 years.
• Upgrade 1,000 industrial training institutes with hub and spoke arrangements.
• Industry-aligned course content and design.

Inclusive Human Resource Development and Social Justice

• Purvodaya: Vikas bhi Virasat bhi:
• Economic opportunities for Eastern states: Bihar, Jharkhand, West Bengal, Odisha, Andhra Pradesh.
• Development of Amritsar Kolkata Industrial Corridor and industrial node at Gaya.
• Women’s Schemes:
• Over ₹3 lakh crore allocated for schemes benefiting women and girls.
• Tribal Development:
• Pradhan Mantri Janjatiya Unnat Gram Abhiyan: 63,000 villages, benefiting 5 crore tribal people.
• North East Region: 100+ branches of India Post Payment Bank.
• Andhra Pradesh Reorganization Act: ₹15,000 crores for infrastructure and Polavaram Irrigation Project completion.

Manufacturing & Services

• Industrial Parks:
• Development of twelve industrial parks under the National Industrial Corridor Development Programme.
• Internship Opportunities:
• Internships in 500 top companies for 1 crore youth over 5 years.
• Allowance of ₹5,000/month and one-time assistance of ₹6,000 via CSR funds.
• Rental Housing:
• Dormitory-type accommodation for industrial workers in PPP mode with VGF support.
• Critical Minerals Mission:
• Domestic production, recycling, and overseas acquisition of critical minerals.
• MSME Credit Support:
• Credit support and enhanced credit guarantee schemes.
• Mudra Loans limit increased to ₹20 lakh from ₹10 lakh under ‘Tarun’ category.

Urban Development

• Stamp Duty:
• Encouragement for states to lower stamp duties for properties purchased by women.
• Street Markets:
• Development of 100 weekly ‘haats’ or street food hubs in select cities.
• Transit-Oriented Development:
• Plans for 14 large cities with populations over 30 lakh.
• Water Management:
• Promotion of water supply, sewage treatment, and solid waste management in 100 large cities.
• Housing:
• PM Awas Yojana Urban 2.0: Investment of ₹10 lakh crore to address housing needs of 1 crore urban poor and middle-class families.
• Policies and regulations for efficient rental housing markets.

Energy Security

• Bharat Small Reactors:
• Development and R&D of Bharat Small Modular Reactors.
• Energy Audit:
• Investment-grade energy audit in 60 clusters, expanding to 100 clusters.
• Pumped Storage Policy:
• NTPC-BHEL joint venture to set up an 800 MW commercial plant.
• Clean Energy:
• Financial support for shifting micro and small industries to cleaner energy forms.
• PM Surya Ghar Muft Bijli Yojana:
• Provision of free electricity up to 300 units per month for 1 crore households.
• Rural Connectivity:
• Phase IV of PMGSY: All-weather connectivity to 25,000 rural habitations.
• Irrigation and Flood Mitigation:
• ₹11,500 crore for projects like Kosi-Mechi intra-state link and other schemes.
• Assistance for reconstruction and rehabilitation in Himachal Pradesh, Assam, Sikkim, and Uttarakhand.

Innovation, Research & Development

• National Research Fund:
• Operationalization of Anusandhan National Research Fund for basic research and prototype development.
• Private Sector Innovation:
• ₹1 lakh crore financing pool for private sector-driven research.
• Space Economy:
• ₹1,000 crore venture capital fund for space economy initiatives.

Tourism

• Cultural and Heritage Development:
• Development of Vishnupad Temple Corridor, Mahabodhi Temple Corridor, and comprehensive initiatives for Rajgir and Nalanda.
• Reviving Nalanda University and promoting Odisha as a tourism destination.

Priorities for Viksit Bharat

• Next Generation Reforms:
• Unique Land Parcel Identification Number (Bhu-Aadhaar) for all lands.
• Survey and digitization of land records and cadastral maps.
• Establishment of a comprehensive land registry.
• Linkages to farmers’ registries.
• Digitization and GIS mapping of urban land records.
• Climate Finance:
• Enhancing availability of capital for climate adaptation and mitigation investments.
• Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) and Overseas Investments:
• Simplified processes to facilitate FDIs.
• Promotion of using the Indian Rupee for overseas investments.
• NPS Vatsalya:
• A plan for contributions by parents and guardians for minors.
• Data Governance:
• Improvement in data governance, collection, processing, and management.

Economic Foundations

• Growth:
• India grew at 8.2% in FY 2024.
• Improvement in Current Account Deficit.
• Expansion in Services and Manufacturing sectors (PMI Index).
• Fiscal and Inflation:
• Decreasing Fiscal Deficit as a percentage of GDP.
• Decline in Gross Non-Performing Assets (NPAs) of Scheduled Commercial Banks (SCBs).

Tax Proposals

• Simplification in Taxes:
• Comprehensive review of Income Tax Act 1961.
• Simplification of tax processes for charities and TDS.
• Sector-Specific Customs Duty Proposals:
• Reduce Basic Customs Duty (BCD) to 15% on mobile phones, PCBA, and chargers.
• Reduce custom duty on gold and silver to 6% and platinum to 6.4%.
• Exempt custom duties on 25 critical minerals and more capital goods for manufacturing solar cells & panels.
• Reduce BCD on shrimp and fish feed to 5%.
• Direct Tax Proposals:
• Short-term gains on financial assets to attract 20% tax rate.
• Long-term gains on all assets to attract 12.5% tax rate.
• Increase exemption limit on capital gains on financial assets to ₹1.25 lakh per year.
• Standard Deduction for salaried employees increased from ₹50,000 to ₹75,000.
• Deduction on family pension increased from ₹15,000 to ₹25,000.
• Employment and Investment:
• Abolish ANGEL tax for all classes of investors.
• Simpler tax regime for domestic cruise operations.
• Safe harbour rates for foreign mining companies (selling raw diamonds).
• Reduce corporate tax rate on foreign companies from 40% to 35%.

Simplifying the New Tax Regime

Revised tax brackets:

• ₹0-3 lakh: Nil
• ₹3-7 lakh: 5%
• ₹7-10 lakh: 10%
• ₹10-12 lakh: 15%
• ₹12-15 lakh: 20%
• >₹15 lakh: 30%