Budget 2014: Rebuilding of the economy commences

Budget 2014 is a strong first step to slowly re-architecting and reviving our economy and transform India, says Rajeev Chandrasekhar.

Finance Minister Arun Jaitley and the Modi sarkar started with an economy that was in shambles and with no fiscal headroom on spending. The economy is stuck in a high inflation, low growth mode and has been in that mode for several quarters now.

Budget 2014 is not high on hype or poetry, but rather, full of small substantive details. Its title can be: Restore investor confidence, boost infrastructure spend, domestic manufacturing boost, agricultural economy boost, rural spending to be focused on asset building, tax cuts for low income and senior citizens, and a fiscally responsible government spending program.

The finance minister has taken on the challenge of reviving the economy head on and transforming it into one that is investment and job creation driven. He has addressed some of the biggest issues like retrospective taxation for investors, given domestic manufacturing and agriculture a boost, and despite the fiscal problems, still managed to give low income, senior citizens and domestic savers hikes in tax exemption.

My suggestions of farmers markets as a part of the solution for food inflation; technology for better tax compliance; and, most dear to me - a war memorial – are all in the Budget.

The move to a national market starts with a commitment to GST - and an agreement to rationalise taxes, and a move to a new tax regime with a look at Direct Tax Code - are all good news for investors and consumers. Increased infrastructure spending on roads, PSUs, ports all mean a boost to the economy as well!

The most important issue of government spending and borrowing has been described by the FM as I did in the price rise debate – as a liability on future generations - and he has laid out a strong, realistic and credible roadmap to reducing fiscal deficit and make government move to more responsible spending.

Our economy needs to transform into a high growth, low inflation one, and I am pleased with this first Budget of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Government and believe this is a strong first step to slowly re-architecting and reviving our economy and transform India!

Please click here for the Complete Coverage of Budget 2014 -15