Budget 2023 Highlights: Income Tax Limit Extended upto 7 Lakh, Imported Cars To Cost More

Presenting the last budget of the Modi government before the General Elections of 2024, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced Budget 2023, which included a huge capital flow in infrastructure and agricultural sectors. Meanwhile, the biggest relief that the Modi government offered in Budget 2023 is extending the income tax limit up to 7 Lakh.

The Budget 2023 for the Financial Year 2023-24 focuses on expanding its capital in building roads, highways and railway lines, clearly highlighting the Narendra Modi government’s priorities. The Finance Minister kept the fiscal deficit with a target of 5.9% in FY 24 and adhered to the target for the current year as well.

Here are some of the key highlights of the Budget 2023-24

• The allocation for the period 2021-22 stood at Rs 8,118.65 crore, making this year’s budget estimation nearly double of what it was 2 years ago.
• The budget estimate for the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology increased from Rs 11,719.95 crore to Rs 16,549.04 crore.
• In Budget 2023, 2.40 crore has been allocated to Indian Railways, 9 times higher than 2013-14.
• The deposit limit for Senior Citizen Savings Scheme is doubled to Rs 30 lakh and Monthly Income Account Scheme to Rs 9 lakh.
• In Budget 2023-24, the allocation for the Road Transport and Highways Ministry (moRTH) has been increased by 36% to around Rs 2.7 lakh crore.
• PM Kaushal Vikas Yojana 4.0 to be launched to skill lakhs of youth. It will cover new age courses.
• Rs 35,000 crore capital investment allocated towards energy transition and net zero objective and energy security by the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas.
• Fiscal support for digital public infrastructure to continue in 2023-2024.
• Imported vehicles including EVs, Silver Dore, Naphtha; styrene, Vinyl Chloride Monomer, Compounded Rubber, Articles of precious metals, Imitation Jewellery; Electric Kitchen Chimney, Bicycles, Toys and parts of toys (other than parts of electronic toys) to get costlier.
• Rs 86,175 crore has been allocated to the department of health and family welfare, while Rs 2,980 crore has been allocated to the department of health research for the upcoming FY.
• Import tax surged on compounded rubber from 10% to 25%.
• Sugar cooperatives to receive a benefit of Rs 10,000 crore.
• The outlay for 3rd phase of e-courts is set at Rs 7000 crore.
• The divestment target for FY 2023 has been set at Rs 50,000 crore.
• Huge relief for tax payers: Tax exemption up to Rs 7 lakh/year. No tax for income up to Rs 3 lakh/year.
• The FM has proposed to reduce the highest surcharge rate from 37% to 25% in the new tax regime.
• Cigarettes to get costlier. National Calamity Contingent Duty increased by 16% on specified cigarettes.
• The inter-state transmission system for evacuation and grid integration of 13W renewable energy from Ladakh is to be constructed with an investment of Rs 20,700 crore, including the centre’s support of Rs 8,300 crore.
• Mobile phone production in India is to be increased to 31 crore units valued at Rs 2,75,000 crore in the last fiscal year.
• Custom duty to decrease in certain parts of mobile phones like a camera lens, batteries etc.
• The government has expanded the government digital certificate depository Digilocker services for the fintech sector.
• The central government is set to borrow Rs 15.43 lakh crore via bonds in 2023-24 on a gross basis, an all-time high.
• To provide support to 47 lakh youths in 3 years, a Direct Benefit Transfer under a pan India National Apprentice Scheme will be rolled out.
• The FM said that Permanent Account Number (PAN) should be legalised as a single business identification so that businesses can enter into the national single-window system by using only PAN.
• The Budget 2023-24 allocated Rs 79,000 crore for the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY) to provide housing to the urban poor.
• The centre has increased its capex target to Rs 10 lakh crore, 33% higher than the budget estimate of Rs 7.5 lakh crore for 2022-23.
• 157 new nursing colleges to be established and Eklavya Modern Schools to be set up in the next three years
• The government will be undertaking a mission to eliminate sickle cell anaemia by 2047, which entails creating awareness, screening of 7 crore people in the age group of 0-40 years in tribal areas and collaborations between central institutions and state governments.
• The agri credit target has been increased to Rs 20 lakh crore. The government will spend Rs 2200 crore on high-value horticulture.
• An open-source digital infrastructure will be created for Agriculture, and an agriculture accelerator fund will be set up to focus on youth in rural areas.
• Nirmala Sitharaman said that green growth would be one of the priorities of Budget 2023, and many programmes are being implemented to help reduce carbon intensity and create green jobs.
• As part of PM Garib Kalyan Yojana, the centre will be spending Rs 2 lakh crore on free food grains for all priority households and antyodaya till December 2023
• The Finance Minister said that India’s economy would continue to grow at 7% in the current fiscal year.