Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday hailed the General Budget, saying it has established a strong base to fulfill the aspirations and resolutions of a developed India. The budget, he said, gives priority to the deprived and strives to fulfill the dreams of an aspirational society, the poor, villages and the middle class.

The PM particularly highlighted the reduction in tax rates as well as the simplification, transparency and speeding up of the processes for the benefit of the middle class. “Our government that always stood with the middle class has given huge tax relief to them,” he said.

He congratulated Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and her team for a historic budget, saying the country has for the first time come up with many schemes as a tribute to the hard work and creation of traditional artisans like carpenters, lohar (ironsmiths) Sunar (goldsmiths), Kumhars (potters), sculptors and many others.

From women living in the cities to villages, employed to homemakers, the PM said, the government has taken significant steps such as Jal Jeevan Mission, Ujjwala Yojna and PM Awas Yojana etc. that will further empower the women.

This budget, the PM said, will make cooperatives a fulcrum of the development of the rural economy. The government, he continued, has made the world’s largest food storage scheme in the cooperative sector. An ambitious scheme to form new primary co-operatives has also been announced in the budget. This will expand the area of milk and fish production along with farming, farmers, animal husbandry and fishermen will get better prices for their produce.

This year’s Budget infuses new energy to India’s development trajectory. #AmritKaalBudget https://t.co/lyV2SMgvvs

— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) February 1, 2023

Emphasising the need to replicate the success of digital payments in the agriculture sector, he said that this budget comes with a big plan for digital agriculture infrastructure.

The budget, Modi continued, will give an unprecedented expansion to Green Growth, Green Economy, Green Infrastructure, and Green Jobs for a Sustainable Future.

“In the budget, we have laid a lot of emphasis on technology and the new economy. Aspirational India of today wants modern infrastructure in every field like road, rail, metro, port, and waterways. Compared to 2014, investment in infrastructure has increased by more than 400 per cent,” he said and underlined the unprecedented investment of Rs 10 lakh crore on infrastructure that will give new energy and speed to India’s development.

He informed that these investments will create new employment opportunities for the youth, thereby providing new income opportunities to a large population.

The PM also touched upon the Ease of Doing Business which is taken forward through the campaign of credit support and reforms for industries. “An additional loan guarantee of Rs 2 lakh crore has been arranged for MSMEs”, he noted and observed that increasing the limit of presumptive tax will help MSMEs to grow.