Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman presented Union Budget 2024 on Tuesday. Sitharaman said that the Budget focuses on on four major classes – poor, women, youth and farmer. From changes in Income Tax slabs under the New Tax Regime to revisions in customs duties on several items, FM Sitharaman made a slew of big announcements. Follow LIVE updates of the Union Budget 2024 on News18.
This is the first Budget of the Modi 3.0 government after Lok Sabha Elections 2024. This is also a record seventh Budget speech for Sitharaman. Here are the highlights of the Union Budget 2024:
The Finance Minister said that the Budget will make sustained efforts on 9 priorities for Viksit Bharat:
- Productivity and resilience in agriculture
- employment and skilling
- manufacturing and services
- urban development
- infrastructure
- innovation, research and development
- Next gen reforms
Income Tax
The FM announced a review of the Income Tax Act. Sitharaman also made several announcements on LTCG, STCG, Corporate tax and Personal Income Tax.
- Two Tax Incentive Regimes For Charity Sector Will Be Merged Into One
- TDS Rate On e-Commerce Operators Reduced To 0.1 per cent from 1 per cent
- Long-term Cap Gains On All Financial & Non-Financial Instruments Will Attract 12.5%
- Short-term Gains Will Attract 20% On Some Assets
- Limit Of Long-term Capital Gains Exemption Hiked To Rs 1.25 lakh from Rs 1 lakh
- Listed Financial Assets Held For More Than 1 Year Will Be Long Term
- Long-term Capital Gains Tax Increased To 12.5% From 10%. This also means that Long Term Capital gains tax rate on sale of property will be reduced from 20% to 12.5%, however, indexation benefits will be removed.
- Short-Term Capital Gains Tax Hiked to 20% from 15%
- No Angel Tax On All Classes Of Assets
- Security Transaction Tax On F&O Increased To 0.02% & 0.1%
- Propose To Cut Corporate Tax For Foreign Companies To 35% from 40%
Personal Income Tax
- Standard Deduction limit increased to Rs 75,000 from Rs 50,000 under New Tax Regime
- Deduction on family pension for pensioners increased from Rs 15,000 to Rs 25,000 under New Tax Regime
- Lowest Slab In New Tax Regime Increased To Rs 3 lakh From Rs 2.5 lakh. Here’s what the Income Tax Slab under the New Regime would look like:
0-3 lakh: Nil
3-7 lakh: 5%
7-10 lakh: 10%
10-12 lakh: 15%
12-15 lakh: 20%
Above 15 lakh: 30%
- The FM said that salaried Employee In New Tax Regimes Stands To Save Rs 17,500 In Income Tax
- No change in tax rates under the Old Tax Regime.
Customs Duty proposals
- To provide relief to cancer patients, the FM announced that three more medicines will be free of customs duties.
- The FM also announced changes in BCD for X-ray tubes and flat panel detectors for X-ray medicines under phased manufacturing programme.
- The customs duty cut on gold and silver has also been reduced to 6%. The BCD on platinum has been reduced to 6.4%.
- The FM also proposed to cut customs duty on manufacturing leather and footwear.
- Customs duty on mobile phones, mobile PCBA and chargers have also been brought down to 15%.
- The BCD on shrimp and fish feed has been reduced to 5%.
Big Push For Employment:
FM Sitharaman announced big moves on employment generation and money for first-time job-seekers. Sitharaman announced three schemes for employment linked schemes.
- The FM announced that the government will provide 1 month wages to all persons newly entering workforce in the formal sector.
- For job creation in manufacturing, the FM announced that the government will incentivise employees and employers with EPFO contribution. The government will reimburse EPFO contributions of employers up to Rs 3,000 per month for 2 years for all new hires.
Sops to Bihar and Andhra Pradesh
The Finance Minister made big announcements for Bihar and Andhra Pradesh, the two states ruled by BJP allies JDU and TDP.
- Bihar: FM Sitharaman announced a Rs 26,000 crore allocation for highways in Bihar. She added that the request of Bihar for multilateral development will be expediated. She also announced that Rs 15,000 crore will be arranged with add amounts in future years to set up new airports, medical colleges, sports infrastructure in Bihar.
Bihar has also been given a Rs 11,500 crore flood mitigation package.
The FM also announced a plan for comprehensive development of Vishnupath and Mahabodhi corridors on the lines of Kashi-Vishwanath corridor. Nalanda University will also be promoted as a tourist spot apart from being an educational centre. A comprehensive development initiative for Rajgir will also be undertaken which holds religious significance for Hindus, Buddhists and Jains.
- Andhra Pradesh: The FM announced Rs 15,000 crore to develop the capital of Andhra Pradesh. She also announced grants for backward regions of Andhra Pradesh as per the AP Reorganisation Act.
The FM announced a proposal for the completion of Polavaram Irrigation Project ensuring food security of the nation. The FM also announced essential infrastructure such as water, power, railways and roads in Kopparthy node on the Vishakhapatnam-Chennai Industrial Corridor and Orvakal node on Hyderabad-Bengaluru Industrial Corridor.
MSMEs
The FM made the following announcements for MSMEs
- New MSME guaranteee plan to enable loans up to Rs 100 crore
- PSU banks to make internal assessment model for MSME credit
- Govt to bring MSME credit guarantee scheme for collateral-free loan
- New mechanism to facilitate bank credit to MSMEs while being in SMA (special mention account) stage
- Limit Of Mudra Loans enhanced from Rs 10 lakh To Rs 20 lakh
- Export hubs to be set up under a regulatory body
Other Key Announcements
- Sitharaman announced a scheme for providing internship opportunities in 500 top companies to 1 crore youth in 5 years. An allowance of Rs 5,000 per month along with a one-time assistance of Rs 6,000 through the CSR funds will be provided.
- The Finance Minister also announced a Rs 10 lakh crore outlay for Prime Minister’s urban housing plan.
- Finance Minister Sitharaman announced the PM Suryaghar Muft Bijli Yojana for 1 crore houses.
- Sitharaman said that states will be encouraged to bring down stamp duties.
- The Finance Minister also announced flood relief assistance to Assam, Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand.
Ahead of Budget, the Finance Minister tabled Economic Survey 2023-24 in Parliament on Monday. The Economic Survey remained bullish on India’s growth and macroeconomic outlook and pegged India’s GDP growth for FY25 at 6.5-7 per cent and the country’s inflation lower at 4.5 per cent. The Economic Survey 2023-24 also said the Indian economy needs to add 7.85 million jobs every year until 2030 in the non-farm sector.
Ahead of the presentation, the FM arrived in Parliament with the Bahi Khata, clad in a white and magenta silk sari. Earlier today, she met President Droupadi Murmu and sought her approval for the Budget. Murmu fed her curd and sugar, a tradition where a person going for an important assignment is fed this.
Stay informed with our comprehensive coverage of Union Budget 2024. Get the latest on new income tax slab rates for AY 2024-25 in Income Tax Slabs Budget 2024 LIVE Updates . Track the impact of Budget 2024 on the stock market in Stock Market Budget Day 2024 LIVE Updates. Watch Union Budget LIVE Streaming here