In an election year, no free lunch

A budget without sops or freebies reflects the government's confidence; Opposition terms it arrogance

- N Madhavan

In a move that reflected the government’s confidence in its ability to do well in the forthcoming Lok Sabha elections, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman refrained from offering any sops or freebies in the interim budget. There was no change to individual tax rates, nor any increase in allocation for many popular schemes such as the PM Kisan Samman Yojana and Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme.

On the contrary, her budget sought to speed up the pace of fiscal consolidation.

Sitharaman, however, was not about to miss the opportunity - a budget speech just weeks before elections - to list the achievements of the government. She started her 46-minute speech talking about "the profound positive transformation the economy has undergone in the last 10 years." 

She highlighted the "all-round, all-pervasive and all-inclusive" approach to growth and development that has ensured housing, cooking gas, electricity, tap water and bank accounts for all.