Budget ambitious, addresses country’s aspirations: PM

New Delhi, Feb 1: Prime Minister Narendra Modi Sunday said that today’s budget is historic and reflects the empowered spirit of the nation’s women. He highlighted that Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, as a woman finance minister, has set a new record by presenting the country’s budget for the ninth consecutive time.
The Prime Minister said that this budget is a highway of immense opportunities, one that fulfills the dreams of the present and strengthens the foundation of India’s bright future. He emphasized that the budget serves as the basis for India’s high flight towards becoming a developed nation by 2047.
Modi noted that the reform express on which India is riding will gain new energy and new momentum through this budget. He underlined that the path-breaking reforms undertaken provide the aspiring, courageous, and talented youth of India with an open sky to soar. He further remarked that the budget realizes the vision of trust-based governance and a human-centric economic framework. The Prime Minister stressed that this is a unique budget, focused on reducing fiscal deficit and controlling inflation, while simultaneously ensuring high capital expenditure and high growth.
Prime Minister Modi remarked that this budget strengthens India’s global role anew. He highlighted that India’s 140 crore citizens are not satisfied with being the fastest growing economy, and the nation is determined to soon become the world’s third largest economy. He emphasized that this is the collective resolve of millions of Indians. The Prime Minister stated that India’s role as a trusted democratic partner and trusted quality supplier is continuously expanding. He underlined that the recent major trade deals India has undertaken are aimed at ensuring maximum benefit for the country’s youth and for small and medium enterprises, with significant steps taken in this budget to advance that direction.
Emphasising that the budget presents an ambitious roadmap to accelerate Make in India and the Atmanirbhar Bharat campaign, Modi noted that the unprecedented support given to sunrise sectors such as the BioPharma Shakti Mission, Semiconductor Mission 2.0, Electronic Component Manufacturing Scheme, creation of a Rare Earth Corridor, strengthening critical minerals sector, new schemes in the textile sector, promotion of high-tech tool manufacturing, and preparation of champion MSMEs is futuristic and addresses both present and future needs of the nation. The Prime Minister remarked that the support extended to MSMEs, including small and cottage industries, will empower them to grow from local to global.
Modi further highlighted that the budget takes several major steps to strengthen infrastructure, including a dedicated freight corridor, expansion of waterways across the country, a high-speed rail corridor, special focus on the development of tier-2 and tier-3 cities, and promotion of municipal bonds to provide stronger economic foundations for cities. He stressed that all these measures will accelerate the journey towards a developed India.
Prime Minister remarked that the greatest capital of any nation is its citizens, and in recent years the government has made unprecedented investments to enhance their capabilities. He highlighted that the continuous effort has been to strengthen skill, scale, and sustainability. Reiterating Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman’s statement that this is a youth power budget, Modi emphasized that the provisions made in the budget will prepare leaders, innovators, and creators across different sectors. He noted that through the establishment of medical hubs, allied health professionals, promotion of the orange economy including audio-visuals, encouragement of gaming, tourism, and the Khelo India Mission, new opportunities will open for the youth. He remarked that a major tax concession has been announced to make India the world’s data center hub. Extending special congratulations to the youth, he said this budget will give a significant boost to the employment generation. The Prime Minister expressed happiness that concrete steps have been taken to promote tourism, particularly in the North East, and that the foundation of balanced development has been strengthened by empowering different states.
Highlighting that more than 10 crore women are associated with self-help groups, Modi said the budget prioritizes building a modern ecosystem for women-led and women-run self-help groups, with the aim that every household welcomes prosperity. He noted that the campaign to build new hostels for girl students in every district will make education more accessible.
The Prime Minister stressed that agriculture, dairy, and fisheries have always been given the highest priority by the government. He pointed out that in this budget, important measures have been taken for farmers engaged in the production of coconut, cashew, cocoa, and sandalwood. He remarked that the Bharat Vistaar AI tool will greatly help farmers by providing information in their own language. He further stated that promoting entrepreneurship in fisheries and animal husbandry will create more employment and self-employment opportunities in villages. The Prime Minister concluded by saying that this budget is ambitious and addresses the aspirations of the nation. He once again congratulated Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and her team for presenting a futuristic, sensitive budget, and a budget dedicated to the welfare of villages, the poor, and farmers. (PIB)