The Indian Institute of Management (IIM Raipur) held a pre-budget discussion to find out what its young minds expect India’s Finance Minister to deliver in the Union Budget 2015-16 on Saturday this year. The first panel discussion revolved around ‘Agriculture and Rural Development’ where students spoke about how India’s agricultural sector needed a stimulus, an IIM press release issued here on Friday stated.
The panel examined some of the shortcomings of the previous budget with respect to the agricultural sector and identified key areas of focus in order to provide a much needed boost to the sector. The panel dwelt upon the need for skill development in the agricultural sector, it stated.
Although sufficient infrastructure was in place to facilitate skill development in the agricultural sector it was seldom used effectively. Budgetary allocations to improve the quality of agricultural training institutes that might encourage more candidates to enrol into courses related to agriculture. The panel also proposed a better unbiased tax structure to ensure and promote an organized agro based industry. The students ended the discussion with how the expectations from the budget are high and how it would certainly bring in policies that would improve the sector that is the largest source of employment in the country.
The second panel discussed and deliberated over ‘Infrastructure and Industry’. The students spoke on the performance and expectations of the manufacturing and infrastructure sectors. India’s development story depends heavily on how the country’s infrastructure and industry sector perform.
The third panel discussion was on ‘Social Sector Programmes.’ The students broadly discussed topics like job creation, poverty alleviation, social healthcare, education, food, water, sanitation and so on. Students proposed budget allocation on nation-wise incubation centre and to encourage SMEs and social entrepreneurship. Provisions for tax benefits for specially abled and senior citizens would be helpful to the country. larger allotment for schools and research in biotechnology would help the education and healthcare sectors.
The event’s final panel discussion was on ‘The Financial Sector’ in which the students talked about the banking sector, insurance sector, capital market and taxation discussion revolved around direct tax, indirect tax, goods and trade tax and retrospective tax regimes.
