The Federation of Andhra Pradesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FAPCCI) has dubbed the Union budget as a ‘balanced’ one under the present circumstances marked by several years of low GDP and high deficit rate. Equitable and proportional allocations were made to various sectors although more funds for MSMEs would have been welcomed.
“Overall, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley has done a good job,” said FAPCCI president, Shiv Kumar Rungta, and gave him 7 out of 10 marks.
Speaking to presspersons after a quick review of the budget presented on Thursday, he said the promise of reducing the fiscal deficit from 4.1 per cent to 3 per cent in the next three years was a daunting task. But having targeted to peg it down, it can be achieved. Fundraising has been made easy and this will bring down interest rates. Promoting FDI by raising the cap to 46 per cent in defence, infrastructure, insurance and real estate can attract lot of foreign investment in the country.
But the negative point in the budget, many felt, was not indicating the date of implementation of GST. “Giving a timeline would have been fine. We hope the government implements it shortly,” Mr. Rungta said.
He welcomed the Finance Minister’s assurance to honour the commitments made by the then Prime Minister, Manmohan Singh, at the time of the bifurcation of Andhra Pradesh. The announcement of AIIMS and Agricultural University for Andhra Pradesh and Horticulture University for Telangana was welcome. Former FAPCCI president, Devendra Surana, said there were high expectations from the maiden budget of the Modi government. Though they may not be realised, checking the fiscal deficit is a big plus point. Mr. Surana also appreciated the government’s move to make easy raising of capital both within and outside the country. “It makes us competitive,” Mr. Surana remarked and welcomed the big boost given to the solar sector although the energy sector as such did not receive much attention. FAPCCI vice-president Ravindra Modi said the budget was pragmatic and indicated the direction the government would take in the coming years. GST will be effective in stabilising prices but it is not clear when it will be implemented. He complimented Mr. Jaitley for being the first Finance Minister to talk about sanitation, smart cities and urban development.
