Dr. Saon Ray, Professor, ICRIER.

“The budget recognizes the importance of barriers in improving our export competitiveness and has addressed these barriers e.g. logistics, SEZ etc. The PM Gatishkati National Master Plan and the development of Multimodal Logistics Park at four locations are examples. Cargo terminals under the PM Gatishkati Cargo Terminals by the Railways for multimodal transport in the next three years.

It has underscored the importance of GVCs and the necessity of linking with value chains to promote exports. It has rationalized the customs duty on items of chemicals, electronics, and gems and jewellery to give a fillip to domestic manufacturing. To promote the manufacturing of capital goods, exemptions are being introduced on inputs, like specialised castings, ball screw and linear motion guide. The tariff of 7.5% on capital goods and project imports has been proposed. The exemptions for advanced machineries that are not manufactured within the country shall continue.

The overall vision in the budget is to encourage domestic manufacturing in the country and promote exports