The School of Contemporary Knowledge Systems (CKS) held the 9th talk of the ‘Finance Talk Series’, on ‘Navigating Union Budget 2024: Insights and Analysis’. The B.Com. third-year students, Afreen Shafi, Gobika S., Rohith Salunkhe, Venkitachalam K. R., and Vijayadharshini M., presented the budget highlights from a layman’s perspective. Following their presentation, Asst. Prof. Pratheep Kumar from the School of CKS led an expert discussion on the interim budget analysis.
The discussion covered various topics, including the fact that the interim budget, which is a precursor to the full-year fiscal roadmap, was presented in the parliament by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on 1st February 2024 due to the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. The main focus of the budget was on the ‘four major castes—garib, mahilayen, yuva, and anna daata’. The discussion also touched on the government’s focus on healthcare, particularly the Ayushman Bharath scheme, which will be extended to all Asha workers and anganwadi workers, providing them with health insurance. The finance minister also announced the government’s plans to focus on vaccination against cervical cancer for girls aged 9 to 14.
Other topics of discussion included infrastructure development, which is a key driver of growth, and is usually associated with physical assets such as roads, ports, power transmission lines, etc. India’s growth is closely associated with not only physical but also social and digital infrastructure. The budget for 2024 gives a powerful thrust to all these dimensions of infrastructure development, which will accelerate inclusive growth, with the goal of India becoming a $7 trillion economy by 2030.
Furthermore, the interim budget also focuses on the education system, tourism, railways, roads, agriculture, aviation, and renewable energy. The event also discussed the budget allocation for these sectors. The interim budget aims to boost holistic economic growth, with measures such as allocating Rs. 1 lakh crore for interest-free loans, which emphasizes the government’s commitment to strengthening innovation and research. Additionally, highlighting the role of digital public infrastructure shows a push towards formalising the economy, which supports the organised financial services sector, enhancing lending, investments, and savings efficiency.