Budget 2025 round-up: A bonanza for the middle class
Ahead of the Budget, there was an expectation that the government would provide some relief for the middle class, which has been stuck in a rut lately.
FM Nirmala Sitharaman delivered a big announcement for this class — in her Budget speech, she announced that there would be no income tax for incomes up to ₹12 lakh.
“I am now happy to announce that there will be no income tax payable up to income of ₹12 lakh [i.e. average income of ₹1 lakh per month other than special rate income such as capital gains] under the new regime,” the Finance Minister said.
This move comes in after prevalent consensus in the industry and the populace at large about increasing aggregate consumption in the economy.
The FM listed several measures to expand affordable housing. She announced that the Government will set up an ‘Urban Challenge Fund’ of Rs 1 lakh crore to implement proposals for developing the country’s cities, for water and sanitation and for making cities as growth hubs.
This fund will finance up to 25 per cent of the cost of bankable projects
with a stipulation that at least 50 per cent of the cost is funded from bonds,
bank loans, and PPPs. The FM proposed an allocation of Rs 10,000 crore in this budget.
She also announced several schemes for MSMEs, start-ups, and first-time entrepreneurs to ensure that small businesses have greater access to credit.
The Finance Minister also announced several programmes to provide nutritional support to children and women.
The Finance Minister also allocated funds to set up fifty thousand Atal Tinkering Labs in government schools over the next five years and get broadband connectivity to these schools and PHCs.
In the education sector, the govt would set up a Centre of Excellence in Artificial Intelligence and increase infrastructure in IITs which were started after 2014. The FM also announced that the government would add 10,000 additional seats in medical colleges and hospitals.
She also announced that gig workers could register on the e-Shram portal and that they would be provided healthcare under PM Jan Arogya Yojana.
Published – February 02, 2025 01:27 am IST
