The Utkal Chamber of Commerce and Industry (UCCI) organised a pre- and post-Budget analysis on the Union Budget under the chairmanship of its vice-president (commerce) Ashok Sharda.
Sharda rated the Budget provisions it as 7.5 on a scale of 1 to 10. He said as the Finance Minister announced various schemes with a long-term view, she was under strain to arrange resources as was evident from the widening fiscal deficit of Rs 16.6 lakh crore and she avoided taking soft measures on Income Tax which was a disappointment for the middle and lower middle class.
However, he lauded the schemes like PM Gati Shakti under which 400 new Vande Mataram Trains and 100 cargo terminals in three years. The scheme of using drone in agriculture, direct payment of Rs 2.75 lakh crore to farmers towards MSP, encouraging private sector involvement in EV ecosystem and battery swapping policy of EV are appreciable efforts, he said.
Additionally, Sharda focused on the establishment of a fund with blended capital under the co-investment model facilitated through the SIDBI which will focus on providing financing to ailing enterprises and support sunrise sectors like pharmaceutical, agriculture and digitisation, etc.
UCCI vice-president (industry) Binod Dash said one of the major gap areas that have resurfaced prominently due to the pandemic is the continuous education and training of the healthcare workforce. Digital University and opening of 100 new channels for school education are very innovative steps.
UCCI treasurer Giridhari Lal Sharma greeted the Budget, particularly the proposals on cryptocurrencies and non-fungible tokens (NFTs) under a tax net, and focused on the decision of 30% tax on any income from the transfer of virtual digital assets, specifying that no deductions and exemptions would be allowed.
The scheme to revise the Income Tax return for any wrong assumption is allowed to be corrected on payment of additional tax which would reduce litigation. Exemption for Startup extended by one more year and disallowing any set off in cases of tax evasion are new steps, he said.