Aalok Kumar, President & Chief Executive Officer, NEC Corporation India

The Union Budget 2022 bolsters India’s vision of becoming the fastest-growing economy, with the country’s economic growth rate estimated to be 9.2% in the upcoming financial year. India is in a solid position to withstand the challenges of the new Covid-19 variants due to higher vaccination drives and efforts to strengthen the national digital health ecosystem, all strategically enabled by the Government. The overall budget is forward-looking, growth-oriented, and well-balanced. The Finance Minister’s focus on enhancing India’s physical as well as digital infrastructure is very progressive.

Infrastructure is the backbone of the Indian economy and the Government’s commitment to strengthening it with seven engines namely road, railways, airports, ports, mass transport, waterways, and logistics infrastructure could pave the way for future growth, connecting every nook and corner of the country. The infusion of significant capital in PM Gati Shakti will ensure speedier implementation of development projects through technology to facilitate faster movement of people & goods. Initiatives like developing 100 Cargo Terminals, ‘One station, one product,’ will further drive consumption, spur growth, and add to job creation.

On the telecom front, we finally have clarity on the 5G spectrum auctions. The auctions this year  will finally make the dream of a 5G-savvy India a reality, while boosting the country’s digital infrastructure and laying a roadmap for adoption of deep tech and technologies such as blockchain that demand a high speed internet connectivity. Scheme for design led manufacturing to be launched for the 5G ecosystem as part of the PLI scheme to enable affordable broadband and mobile communication in rural and remote areas is going to be a gamechanger in implementation and adoption of 5G. Furthermore, PPP in Bharatnet project contracts for optical fibre networks will enable affordable broadband across the country, simplifying delivery and access of e-services. 

The budget underscores Government’s focus on inclusive development and productivity and therefore, the initiatives rolled out for skilling such as youth digital DESH e-portal or institution of a Digital University will boost the much-needed employment generation and prepare Indian youth with newer skill-sets.

Last but not the least, we laud the Government’s focus in improving the ease of doing business. Active involvement of the states, digitisation of manual processes and interventions, integration of the central and state-level systems through IT bridges, a single point access for all citizen-centric services, and a standardization and removal of overlapping compliances will immensely improve the business environment.

The way the Finance Ministry is looking to adopt emerging technologies for India’s holistic development is a massive win in creating a truly connected India in the digital age.