Harshvardhan Lunia, CEO & Co-founder at Lendingkart

“We laud the Government for a pro-growth budget. We are glad to see the Government’s continued commitment to strengthen the MSME segment across industries through a host of positive measures including the ECLGS scheme, which has been extended till March 2023 by 50 thousand crores. This has come at the right time and will benefit MSMEs in the hospitality industry. It is also heartening to hear about the Raising and Accelerating MSME Performance (RAMP) program which will enable small businesses to become more competitive and efficient. Further, the CGTMSE (Credit Guarantee Trust for Micro and Small Enterprises) scheme will continue with additional funds giving impetus to this segment.

The budget also duly acknowledged the growth of the Indian startup ecosystem. The Government’s decision to extend the eligibility of tax benefits for a year will support several startups. The budget also has positive measures around tech-based development and digital-driven initiatives to develop digital skills. In our view, this is a recognition of the impact tech start-ups have had in India. Fintech start-ups have been at the forefront in embracing digitization and will benefit from various reforms.”