Vinayak Chatterjee, Chairman of CII Infrastructure Council and Founder-Managing Trustee of The Infravision Foundation, observes a significant shift in the government’s infrastructure spending approach.
He said the Centre has consistently used public infrastructure investment as a key driver for economic growth, with annual increases of 30% in allocations. However, this year’s near-zero increase in infrastructure spending raises questions about whether there is a shift in economic planning.
“The fact is that the central spend on infrastructure is the market driver for all the states, as well as the private sector as extra-budgetary resources (EBR), it is a market maker. And therefore, this is a very serious question,” Chatterjee said.
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KV Subramanian, Executive Director-India at IMF and former Chief Economic Advisor, echoed the sentiment. He emphasised the need to address capacity constraints within infrastructure ministries to ensure efficient spending and potential future Budget increases.
Kiran Mazumdar Shaw, Executive Chairperson of Biocon & Biocon Biologics, praised the Budget’s focus on private sector innovation, particularly the
₹20,000 crore allocation for research and development. However, she stressed the need for more clarity on how these funds will be utilised.
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She also acknowledged the government’s initiatives in healthcare, especially in rural areas and affordable medicine access. However, she expressed concerns about customs duty exemptions for cancer drugs and called for a goods and services tax (GST) exemption for cancer patients to further ease their financial burden.
Christian de Guzman, Senior Vice President and India Sovereign Analyst at Moody’s Ratings, welcomed the government’s commitment to fiscal consolidation. He highlighted the revised fiscal deficit estimates for 2024-25 and 2025-26 as positive steps in maintaining economic stability.
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Vishesh C Chandiok, CEO of Grant Thornton Bharat, praised the Budget’s focus on deregulation and simplifying the business environment, which could improve ease of doing business in India.
Harsha Vardhan Agarwal, President of FICCI and Vice Chairman & Managing Director of Emami Limited discussed the impact of income tax cuts on private sector investment and job creation. He stated that increased disposable income due to tax reductions could boost consumption, which in turn would encourage private investment and employment growth.
For the entire discussion, watch the accompanying video.
