FICCI president Harshvardhan Neotia commended the government for focussing its priorities on farmers and agricultural sector while formulating the budget. “Overall the budget proposal are in line with the development priorities of the nation. The Finance Minister has made a strong attempt to pump funds in the rural economy and the infrastructure sector. This would yield dividends and we foresee a multiplier effect in the form of demand generation and employment creation over time. The state of the agriculture sector on account of two consecutive years of monsoon failure was precarious and it deserved the attention that was needed.”
He added, “Additionally, we see a lot of emphasis on affordable housing segment which will also result in forward and backward linkages and thus propel growth. Sticking to the fiscal framework is another major plus and should offer comfort to the international community. Attempts towards tax simplification and improving the tax litigation framework are also noteworthy.”
“By committing itself to doubling farmer's income in five years, the government has ensured that all steps will be taken that would fortify the viability of the agriculture sector in the coming years. Creation of a Long Term Irrigation Fund, a further push to the Soil Health Card Scheme, incentivising production of pulses, implementation of a Unified Agriculture Marketing Scheme and bringing on board more states to reform the APMC Act are encouraging initiatives. FICCI has been highlighting the importance of these moves for long and is happy to note that these will now be taken up in right earnest by the government.”
