Post- Budget Quote  from Dr. Partha Chatterjee, Dean of Academics and Professor of Economics, Shiv Nadar University, Delhi NCR

“This budget comes at the time when the growth rate in India has slowed down a notch and the uncertainty in the world is rising. This is quite a common-sense budget. The reduced income tax burden due to the new tax slabs is likely to boost consumption, particularly in the urban area. The different initiatives and schemes announced in the agriculture sector is likely to reduce risk of agricultural production and raise income in the rural area. That will boost consumption in the rural areas. Similarly, a focus on labor-intensive sectors like tourism is likely to boost income and consumption. There are a couple of announcements that are likely to benefit investment by MSMEs and startups. Raising the bar for classification criteria for MSMEs is a welcome step. Announcing a fund of funds for startups will boost that sector. While no details are yet available, a fund of funds for deep tech is also a good idea and can augur technological innovation in the country. This complements the announcement of ten thousand fellowships for technological research. However, what is disappointing is that it is limited to only IITs and IISc. We need a deepening of research across several universities and institutes – limiting the fellowship to only a few institutes is contrary to that. The government’s commitment to reforms is reassuring, though the budget was short of details in this and omitted mention of certain crucial reforms like the labor market reforms. Finally, keeping fiscal deficit Overall, a sensible budget, which focuses on multiple fronts to boost growth rather than one big idea. That also means, much will depend on the details and implementation.”