Budget 2023 Highlights

Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman presented the Union Budget 2023 today, emphasizing on the key changes in the income tax regime, agriculture and tourism projects, and more. The focus remains on widening economic growth, creating more job opportunities, manufacturing, and infrastructure. 

7 Priorities of the Budget 2023, Saptarishi

• Infrastructure and investment
• Green growth
• Youth power
• Financial sector
• Inclusive development
• Reaching the last mile

Aim of Budget 2023

FM Nirmala Sitharaman announced that the aim of budget 2023 is to:

• Empower women
• Facilitate ample opportunities for citizens, especially youth
• Strengthen macroeconomic stability
• Provide strong impetus to growth and job creation
• Help self-help groups with raw materials, branding, and product marketing
• Help women self-help groups reach the next stage of economic development

Major Announcements in the Income Tax Segment

• New tax regime to become the default tax regime
• No changes in the old tax regime
• No tax for individuals having an income of up to 7 lakhs a year

New Slab Rates Under the New Tax Regime

• Rs. 0-3 lakhs-Nil
• Rs. 3-6 lakhs-5%
• Rs. 6-9 lakhs: 10%
• Rs. 9-12 lakhs: 15%
• Rs. 12-15 lakhs: 20%
• Above Rs. 15 lakhs: 30%
• Individuals earning Rs. 9 lakh income will only have to pay Rs. 45,000 in taxes
• Under the new tax structure, individual with income of Rs. 15 lakh has to pay Rs. 1.5 lakh tax compared to Rs. 1.87 lakh under the new structure
• No tax for individuals having income up to Rs. 3 lakhs
• Deductions from capital gains on investments in residential houses to be capped at Rs. 10 crore
• Another proposal is to limit income tax exemption from proceeds of insurance policies with very high value.

Major Highlights for the Fintech Sector

• Digital payments rose to 76% in terms of transactions and 91% in value terms in the year 2022
• Fiscal support for digital public infrastructure will continue in 2023-24
• Scope of expansion for documents available in the DigiLocker app
• Separate entity for DigiLocker will be set up for MSMEs and large businesses
• PM VIKAS scheme will now include access to digital payments and social security
• Allocation for digital payments promotion remains at Rs. 1500 crore for last 3 years

Major Highlights for the Railway Sector

The total outlay for the railways was announced at Rs. 2.40 lakh crore, nine times more than the outlay announced earlier in the year 2013-14.

Announcements related to savings scheme

• The deposit limit under savings scheme to be enhanced from Rs. 15 lakh- Rs. 30 lakhs
• For joint accounts, the monthly scheme limit doubled to Rs. 9 lakh to Rs. 15 lakh
• Mahila Samman Saving Certificate for women, a one time savings scheme will be made available for 2 years up to March 2025. Under the scheme, women can deposit Rs. 2 lakhs for 2 years and earn fixed interest rate of 7.5%

Major Highlights in the Defense Sector

• Defense budget increased to Rs. 5.94 lakh income crore from last year's Rs. 5.25 lakh crore
• The budgetary allocation for capital outlaw was only Rs. 1.52 lakh crore for the year FY 2022-23
• Rs.1.62 lakh crore set aside for capital expenditure including purchase of new weapons, aircraft, military hardware and warships

Major Highlights in the Health Sector

• Mission to eliminate sickle cell anemia by the year 2047

Major Highlights in the Job Sector

• Government to launch Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana 4.0
• Skill the youth to get international opportunities
• 30 skill India centers will be established across different states

Announcements That Will Help in Ease Doing of Business

• PAN will be a common identifier for digital payments made to government agencies
• To settle commercial disputes, government will introduce Vivad Se Vishwas scheme
• For companies filing forms under Companies Act, a central processing center will be set up for faster responses
• Multiple measures will be taken to enhance business activity in GIFT city
• More than 39,000 compliances have been reduced and over 3,400 legal provisions decriminalized to enhancing ease of doing business

Major Highlights in the Education Sector

• Three centers of excellence for artificial intelligence will be set up in educational institutions
• 157 new nursing colleges will be established in colocation with the existing 157 colleges established since 2014
• Eklavaya Model Residential Schools to be set up in the next 3 years. The Centre will recruit 38,800 teachers and support staff for 740 schools serving 3.5 lakh tribal students.

What Has Got Cheaper?

• TV
• Mobile phone
• Shrimp feed
• Lab grown diamonds
• Raw materials for EV industry
• Machinery for lithium ion batteries

What Has Got Costlier?

• Silver
• Cigarettes
• Compounded rubber
• Important luxury cars and EVs
• Imitation jewelry
• Articles made using gold bars
• Imported toys and bicycles