Indian Union Budget 2021-22: Finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Friday slammed the Opposition for attempting to produce a “false narrative” of the Budget for FY22 becoming “crony-centric”, listing out a raft of measures to recommend the government, on the contrary, has championed the trigger of the poor and the vulnerable.
Speaking on the Budget in the Rajya Sabha, Sitharaman stated the newest Budget is the instrument applying which the nation will attain self-reliance. Besides delivering fast quick-term options in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic, the government has intended to chart “long-term sustainable growth” path by means of this Budget.
Sitharaman also countered the allegation that the Budgetary estimates are “suspect”. In reality, it was the UPA government that had resorted to issuing particular bonds worth tens of thousands of crores, in lieu of money subsidies, to oil-marketing and advertising firms, fertiliser firms and to FCI, she pointed out. On the contrary, the newest Budget has transferred under-the-line meals subsidy (routed by means of FCI) to above-the-line in the interest of transparency. The sharp 34.5% rise in FY22 capex from the price range estimate of FY21 (26.2% from the revised estimate for FY21) is also based on credible numbers, and not engineered by means of statistical artefact, she insisted.
“We are looking at medium-term, long-term sustainable growth, which will enable India to remain one of the fastest-growing economies in the world,” she added.
Countering the notion that the government is “pro-rich”, Sitharaman stated, in the wake of the pandemic, as numerous as 800 million folks have been supplied absolutely free grains absolutely free cooking gas was supplied to 80 million folks and money was straight offered to 400 million folks, such as farmers, girls, the differently-abled and the poor. She, even so, asserted that the government does appreciate the contribution of wealth creators.
“Over 1.67 crore houses were completed under the PM Awas Yojana. Is it for the rich? Over 2.67 crore households got electrified under the PM Saubhagya Yojana since October 2017. The total value of orders placed on the government’s e-market-place is Rs 8,22,077 crore. Are they being given to big companies? They are being given to MSMEs,” she pointed out.
As numerous as 69 crore farmers are registered on e-NAM portal. UPI transactions touched 3.6 lakh crore from August 2016 till January 2020, assisting the middle class and modest traders. About nine crore farmers are registered below the PM Fasal Bima Yojna and 11 crore farmers have received income below PM Kisan.
Similarly, loans of more than Rs 27,000 crore have been extended below the Mudra scheme, meant primarily for modest-time budding entrepreneurs.
It has now turn out to be “a sort of habit for some in the Opposition” to produce a false narrative that this government functions only for cronies, regardless of the information to the contrary, the minister stated.
Senior Congress leader Rahul Gandhi final week termed the Budget as “crony centric”. “Modi’s crony centric budget means- Struggling MSMEs given no low-interest loans, no GST relief. The employers of India’s largest workforce betrayed,” he tweeted.
Attacking the Congress on the budgetary assistance for the flagship rural employment assure scheme, Sitharaman stated, the UPA kept generating higher budgetary allocation in the starting of the year but never ever spent the complete budgeted quantity. In contrast, the present NDA regime constantly spent more on the MGNREGA than its price range estimate for every single year. Against the price range estimate of Rs 61,500 crore, the government has now allocated a record Rs 1,11,500 crore for the scheme in FY21, thanks to a surge in demand for work just after the pandemic. Even in FY20, the actual MGNREGA spending stood at Rs 71,000 crore, against the budgeted `60,000 crore, she stated. For FY22, the government has budgeted Rs 73,000 crore.