What's The Best And Worst Thing About The Budget?

FM Jaitley pulls off a please-all budget that lowers taxes and stimulates key sectors, without compromising on fiscal prudence

- M.G. Arun and Shweta Punj

As union finance minister Arun Jaitley rose to present independent India’s 87th budget—and his fourth—he had very few options. Hard pressed as he was to follow the fiscal discipline he had initiated in 2014, he also had to offer a few sops to placate those who had borne the pain of demonetisation. Union Budget 2017-18, then, shaped up as a well-calibrated, cautious yet pragmatic document. It addresses, to some extent, the stated goals of this government—moving the country towards a more formal structure by widening the tax base, reducing dependence on cash by encouraging digital transactions, helping grassroots businesses develop and create jobs, and systematically curbing black money and corruption.

Apart from the sops to affordable housing and new norms for electoral funding to boost transparency, Jaitley refrained from throwing any surprises, or trying to please investors with the so-called ‘big bang’ reforms. They seemed pleased all the same, driving the benchmark Sensex up 1.76 per cent or 485.68 points on Tuesday to close at 28,141.64. “This is a growth-oriented budget,” said Adi Godrej, chairman of the Godrej group. “Coupled with the implementation of the GST (Goods and Services Tax), this will add to the GDP growth of the country.” That should be music to the FM’s ears, coming as it did after the Economic Survey, on January 31, had lowered the country’s estimated GDP growth rate to 6.5 per cent for 2016-17.