Yojana Magazine March 2023 - 4 | Current Affairs & Hindu Analysis: Daily, Weekly & Monthly - UPSC PDF Download

 Page 1


67 March 2023
he stable, consistent, inclusive and 
gender-oriented budget reflected 
india’s momentum and potential. 
Several measures have been 
announced in the budget to empower vulnerable 
tribal groups, women, youth, and micro, small 
and medium enterprises. in addition, the budget 
considers the uncertainties prevailing in the global 
macroeconomic outlook and provides a road map 
for fostering resilience and accelerating growth as 
the indian economy moves towards Amrit Kaal.
inclusive development ensures that all 
marginalised and excluded groups are stakeholders 
in development processes. india is an inexhaustible 
engine of economic development and opportunities. 
t he stable, consistent, inclusive and gender-oriented 
budget reflected i ndia’s momentum and potential.
this year’s budget was remarkable for its clarity, 
equity, simplicity and effectiveness.
empowering Women
gender Budgeting is a powerful tool for 
achieving gender mainstreaming to ensure that 
the development benefits reach women as much 
saBKa saath saBKa viKas 
throUgh Union BUdget
T
Focused on empowering women, developing the skills of the youth, 
providing funds for developing tribal infrastructure and improving 
employment opportunities – the budget has underlined the foremost 
priorities of the government in terms of taking the development  
benefits to the vulnerable sections. 
dr shahin raZi naUshin raZi UGC Emeritus Fellow and Visiting Professor, Arka Jain University. Email: shahin.razi@gmail.com
Research Scholar. Email: naushin.razi.1@gmail.com
as men. the rationale for gender budgeting arises 
from the recognition of the fact that national budget 
impact men and women differently through the 
pattern of resource allocation. Women constitute 
48% of india’s population, but they lag behind men 
on many social indicators like health, education, 
economic opportunities, etc; thus, gender budgeting 
is important.
Focused on empowering women, developing 
the skills of the youth, providing funds for developing 
tribal infrastructure and improving employment 
opportunities – the budget did a lot to promote 
the notion of equity and give every indian the 
opportunity to reach their full potential. to upskill 
the country’s youth for domestic and international 
opportunities, 30 advanced skilling centres are 
envisaged which will  open new avenues for the 
youth to get highly skilled jobs. 
new Saving instruments  
t he union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman 
announced a new small savings scheme with a fixed 
interest rate and fixed tenure to encourage more 
savings among women and girls.
Page 2


67 March 2023
he stable, consistent, inclusive and 
gender-oriented budget reflected 
india’s momentum and potential. 
Several measures have been 
announced in the budget to empower vulnerable 
tribal groups, women, youth, and micro, small 
and medium enterprises. in addition, the budget 
considers the uncertainties prevailing in the global 
macroeconomic outlook and provides a road map 
for fostering resilience and accelerating growth as 
the indian economy moves towards Amrit Kaal.
inclusive development ensures that all 
marginalised and excluded groups are stakeholders 
in development processes. india is an inexhaustible 
engine of economic development and opportunities. 
t he stable, consistent, inclusive and gender-oriented 
budget reflected i ndia’s momentum and potential.
this year’s budget was remarkable for its clarity, 
equity, simplicity and effectiveness.
empowering Women
gender Budgeting is a powerful tool for 
achieving gender mainstreaming to ensure that 
the development benefits reach women as much 
saBKa saath saBKa viKas 
throUgh Union BUdget
T
Focused on empowering women, developing the skills of the youth, 
providing funds for developing tribal infrastructure and improving 
employment opportunities – the budget has underlined the foremost 
priorities of the government in terms of taking the development  
benefits to the vulnerable sections. 
dr shahin raZi naUshin raZi UGC Emeritus Fellow and Visiting Professor, Arka Jain University. Email: shahin.razi@gmail.com
Research Scholar. Email: naushin.razi.1@gmail.com
as men. the rationale for gender budgeting arises 
from the recognition of the fact that national budget 
impact men and women differently through the 
pattern of resource allocation. Women constitute 
48% of india’s population, but they lag behind men 
on many social indicators like health, education, 
economic opportunities, etc; thus, gender budgeting 
is important.
Focused on empowering women, developing 
the skills of the youth, providing funds for developing 
tribal infrastructure and improving employment 
opportunities – the budget did a lot to promote 
the notion of equity and give every indian the 
opportunity to reach their full potential. to upskill 
the country’s youth for domestic and international 
opportunities, 30 advanced skilling centres are 
envisaged which will  open new avenues for the 
youth to get highly skilled jobs. 
new Saving instruments  
t he union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman 
announced a new small savings scheme with a fixed 
interest rate and fixed tenure to encourage more 
savings among women and girls.
68 March 2023
to commemorate Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav, 
a one-time new small savings scheme, Mahila 
Samman Savings Certificate, will be available for 
two years up to March 2025. it will offer a deposit 
facility of up to rs 2 lakh in the name of women or 
girls for a tenure of 2 years at a fixed interest rate of 
7.5 percent with a partial withdrawal option. 
At present only Sukanya Samriddhi Scheme 
allows a guardian to open the account of a girl 
child with a maximum investment limit of rs 1.5 
lakh in a financial year and an interest rate of 7.6 
per cent per annum.
t he Finance Minister also announced changes 
to the Senior Citizens Savings Scheme doubling 
the maximum deposit limit under the scheme. t he 
maximum deposit limit for Senior Citizen Savings 
Scheme will be enhanced from rs 15 lakh to  
rs 30 lakh.
An individual above 60 years of age or retired 
civilian employees above 55 years can open an 
account under SCSS Scheme can subject to the 
condition that investment must be made within 
one month of receipt of retirement benefits.  
retired defence employees above 50 years but 
below 60 years can also subscribe to SCSS subject 
to the condition that investment must be made 
within one month of receipt of retirement benefits. 
SCSS has a tenure of 5 years and offers  an interest 
rate of 8 per cent per annum.
While the investment limit has been doubled, 
the tax exemption of rs 15 lakh available on SCSS 
investment under section 80C remains unchanged.
increasing the limit of SCSS from rs 15 lakh to  
rs 30 lakh is an important announcement to help 
senior citizens and retired investors plan their 
investments in safe instruments. the limit for the 
monthly income account scheme has also been 
enhanced. the maximum deposit limit for Monthly 
income Account Scheme will be enhanced from rs 
4.5 lakh to rs 9 lakh for a single account and from rs 
9 lakh to rs 15 lakh for a joint account.
MiS account can be opened by a single individual 
or jointly up to 3 adults or a guardian on behalf of 
a minor. t he investments are in multiple of rs 1000 
and the scheme offers an interest rate of 7.1 per cent 
per annum payable monthly.
MiS is one of the most popular small savings 
schemes with an outstanding amount of rs 
234825 crore as of February 2022 and SCSS had an 
outstanding of rs 117239 crore as of February 2022. 
the total small savings outstanding as of February 
2022 was rs 1426737 crore.
the budget has envisaged the world’s largest 
food storage scheme within the co-operative sector.  
the budget has also announced an ambitious 
scheme to form new primary co-operatives. it will 
expand the area of milk & fish production along with 
agriculture, thus helping farmers, those engaged 
in annual husbandry and fishermen and women 
farmers to get better prices for their produce.
t he budget also promotes green growth, green 
economy, green infrastructure and green jobs for a 
sustainable future.
through this year’s budget, the indian 
government has reaffirmed its commitment towards 
inclusive development underlining the seven 
priorities for the ‘Amrit Kaal’. the union Budget 
focuses on empowering  youth and reaching the last 
mile through schemes like PM Kaushal Vikas Yojana 
4.0, which  aim to skilling lakhs of youth in new 
courses like coding, Ai, robotics, 3D printing, etc. 
Further, PM Vishwa Karma Kaushal Samman 
package for helping traditional artisans and 
craftspeople and PM PVtg (Particularly Vulnerable 
tribal groups) programme to support the tribal 
groups has been announced to enable economic 
Page 3


67 March 2023
he stable, consistent, inclusive and 
gender-oriented budget reflected 
india’s momentum and potential. 
Several measures have been 
announced in the budget to empower vulnerable 
tribal groups, women, youth, and micro, small 
and medium enterprises. in addition, the budget 
considers the uncertainties prevailing in the global 
macroeconomic outlook and provides a road map 
for fostering resilience and accelerating growth as 
the indian economy moves towards Amrit Kaal.
inclusive development ensures that all 
marginalised and excluded groups are stakeholders 
in development processes. india is an inexhaustible 
engine of economic development and opportunities. 
t he stable, consistent, inclusive and gender-oriented 
budget reflected i ndia’s momentum and potential.
this year’s budget was remarkable for its clarity, 
equity, simplicity and effectiveness.
empowering Women
gender Budgeting is a powerful tool for 
achieving gender mainstreaming to ensure that 
the development benefits reach women as much 
saBKa saath saBKa viKas 
throUgh Union BUdget
T
Focused on empowering women, developing the skills of the youth, 
providing funds for developing tribal infrastructure and improving 
employment opportunities – the budget has underlined the foremost 
priorities of the government in terms of taking the development  
benefits to the vulnerable sections. 
dr shahin raZi naUshin raZi UGC Emeritus Fellow and Visiting Professor, Arka Jain University. Email: shahin.razi@gmail.com
Research Scholar. Email: naushin.razi.1@gmail.com
as men. the rationale for gender budgeting arises 
from the recognition of the fact that national budget 
impact men and women differently through the 
pattern of resource allocation. Women constitute 
48% of india’s population, but they lag behind men 
on many social indicators like health, education, 
economic opportunities, etc; thus, gender budgeting 
is important.
Focused on empowering women, developing 
the skills of the youth, providing funds for developing 
tribal infrastructure and improving employment 
opportunities – the budget did a lot to promote 
the notion of equity and give every indian the 
opportunity to reach their full potential. to upskill 
the country’s youth for domestic and international 
opportunities, 30 advanced skilling centres are 
envisaged which will  open new avenues for the 
youth to get highly skilled jobs. 
new Saving instruments  
t he union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman 
announced a new small savings scheme with a fixed 
interest rate and fixed tenure to encourage more 
savings among women and girls.
68 March 2023
to commemorate Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav, 
a one-time new small savings scheme, Mahila 
Samman Savings Certificate, will be available for 
two years up to March 2025. it will offer a deposit 
facility of up to rs 2 lakh in the name of women or 
girls for a tenure of 2 years at a fixed interest rate of 
7.5 percent with a partial withdrawal option. 
At present only Sukanya Samriddhi Scheme 
allows a guardian to open the account of a girl 
child with a maximum investment limit of rs 1.5 
lakh in a financial year and an interest rate of 7.6 
per cent per annum.
t he Finance Minister also announced changes 
to the Senior Citizens Savings Scheme doubling 
the maximum deposit limit under the scheme. t he 
maximum deposit limit for Senior Citizen Savings 
Scheme will be enhanced from rs 15 lakh to  
rs 30 lakh.
An individual above 60 years of age or retired 
civilian employees above 55 years can open an 
account under SCSS Scheme can subject to the 
condition that investment must be made within 
one month of receipt of retirement benefits.  
retired defence employees above 50 years but 
below 60 years can also subscribe to SCSS subject 
to the condition that investment must be made 
within one month of receipt of retirement benefits. 
SCSS has a tenure of 5 years and offers  an interest 
rate of 8 per cent per annum.
While the investment limit has been doubled, 
the tax exemption of rs 15 lakh available on SCSS 
investment under section 80C remains unchanged.
increasing the limit of SCSS from rs 15 lakh to  
rs 30 lakh is an important announcement to help 
senior citizens and retired investors plan their 
investments in safe instruments. the limit for the 
monthly income account scheme has also been 
enhanced. the maximum deposit limit for Monthly 
income Account Scheme will be enhanced from rs 
4.5 lakh to rs 9 lakh for a single account and from rs 
9 lakh to rs 15 lakh for a joint account.
MiS account can be opened by a single individual 
or jointly up to 3 adults or a guardian on behalf of 
a minor. t he investments are in multiple of rs 1000 
and the scheme offers an interest rate of 7.1 per cent 
per annum payable monthly.
MiS is one of the most popular small savings 
schemes with an outstanding amount of rs 
234825 crore as of February 2022 and SCSS had an 
outstanding of rs 117239 crore as of February 2022. 
the total small savings outstanding as of February 
2022 was rs 1426737 crore.
the budget has envisaged the world’s largest 
food storage scheme within the co-operative sector.  
the budget has also announced an ambitious 
scheme to form new primary co-operatives. it will 
expand the area of milk & fish production along with 
agriculture, thus helping farmers, those engaged 
in annual husbandry and fishermen and women 
farmers to get better prices for their produce.
t he budget also promotes green growth, green 
economy, green infrastructure and green jobs for a 
sustainable future.
through this year’s budget, the indian 
government has reaffirmed its commitment towards 
inclusive development underlining the seven 
priorities for the ‘Amrit Kaal’. the union Budget 
focuses on empowering  youth and reaching the last 
mile through schemes like PM Kaushal Vikas Yojana 
4.0, which  aim to skilling lakhs of youth in new 
courses like coding, Ai, robotics, 3D printing, etc. 
Further, PM Vishwa Karma Kaushal Samman 
package for helping traditional artisans and 
craftspeople and PM PVtg (Particularly Vulnerable 
tribal groups) programme to support the tribal 
groups has been announced to enable economic 
69 March 2023
upliftment of backward and marginalized sections 
of the population.
the Centre’s focus on green growth – to help 
reduce india’s carbon intensity and generate large-
scale green jobs is bound to make the economy 
future ready. Apart from the recently launched green 
hydrogen mission, the government’s announcement 
of customs duty exemption on importing machinery 
required to manufacture electric vehicle batteries 
will be a boon for green mobility. Further, to promote 
green fuel, the government has announced central 
excise duty exemption for blended compressed 
natural gas, in addition to other measures for 
promoting the circular economy, such as establishing 
500 new waste-to-wealth plants.
At a time when the global economy is facing 
headwinds, it is heartening to see that the 
government has not shied away from supporting 
domestic economic activity by maintaining the 
capex support but has gone a step ahead and 
revised the direct tax slabs to support consumption 
activity, especially among the indian middle class. 
this feat becomes even more commendable in 
cognizance of the fact that  the government has 
adhered to its fiscal deficit target of 6.4% of gDP 
for FY 23 and intends to reduce this to 5.9% in FY 
24, thereby sticking to its path of fiscal prudence. 
overall, with this pragmatic budget and its 
strong fundamentals, the indian economy is well 
established in a safe place and emerges as a ‘star’ 
among its global peers.
union Budget 2023-24 is bold in its ideas yet 
conservative in its calculus, ambitious in its strategies 
and firmly anchored in reality. i t successfully 
captures the uncertainties enshrouding the global 
macroeconomic outlook while providing a road map 
for fostering resilience and accelerating growth as 
the indian economy moves towards Amrit Kaal.
this budget is being hailed as a 'Budget for 
All', along the lines of Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas 
(with everyone, for the development of all), as it 
has something to offer to all sections of society. 
the focus of the budget has transitioned from 
facilitating recovery of the Covid-affected economy 
in the last two years to laying down both hard and 
soft tracks for increasing economies of scale and 
ensuring long-term growth.
the document provides a clear vision, as given 
by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, of the kind of 
society india aspires to be in 2047. india@100 will 
rest on the pillars of inclusivity and prosperity, 
where fruits of development reach all regions and 
citizens, especially our youth, women, farmers, 
other Backward Classes, Scheduled Castes, and 
Scheduled tribes. As reflected through the first two 
priorities of “inclusive development” and “reaching 
the last mile” , the budget lays out several measures 
for empowering vulnerable tribal groups, women, 
youth, and micro, small and medium enterprises.
t he budget has a strong focus on empowering 
individuals and local entrepreneurs by leveraging 
technology, and, to a lesser extent, finance. i t lays 
out policies for empowering our youth and helping 
the Amrit Peedhi (the golden generation) unlock 
their potential. it draws attention to the importance 
of skilling for youth, women, craftspersons and self-
help groups (SHgs) to facilitate job creation at scale. 
Special mention must be made of PM Vishwakarma 
KAushal Samman (PM–ViKAS) for skilling traditional 
artisans and craftspersons, the Agriculture 
Accelerator Fund to encourage agri startups by 
young entrepreneurs in rural areas,  and sector-
specific skilling and entrepreneurship development 
for the tourism sector under the Dekho Apna Desh 
initiative.
t he budget for fiscal year (FY) 24 prioritises youth 
power and modern skill development through the 
PM Kaushal Vikas Yojana 4.0 and the Amrit Peedhi 
programme. the scheme will equip young people 
with skills in coding, Artificial i ntelligence, and 
robotics, among others and provide stipends through 
the National Apprenticeship Promotion Scheme. t he 
tourism sector will benefit from a skilled workforce 
and young entrepreneurs will receive marketing 
support through the proposed unity malls (through 
the one District, one Product initiative). t hese are all 
the force multipliers budget wishes to unleash over 
time to compensate for external headwinds.
overall, Budget 2023-24 is anchored in reality, 
transparency, and achievable goals.  it is economically 
smart, reflects political confidence , is fiscally credible 
and emphasises gender equality and inclusiveness.  
it is an Amrit Kaal road map for india to achieve 
glory. t he Budget 2023-24 is truly an Amrit Budget-  
A foundation for Vishwaguru Bharat.                             ?
Page 4


67 March 2023
he stable, consistent, inclusive and 
gender-oriented budget reflected 
india’s momentum and potential. 
Several measures have been 
announced in the budget to empower vulnerable 
tribal groups, women, youth, and micro, small 
and medium enterprises. in addition, the budget 
considers the uncertainties prevailing in the global 
macroeconomic outlook and provides a road map 
for fostering resilience and accelerating growth as 
the indian economy moves towards Amrit Kaal.
inclusive development ensures that all 
marginalised and excluded groups are stakeholders 
in development processes. india is an inexhaustible 
engine of economic development and opportunities. 
t he stable, consistent, inclusive and gender-oriented 
budget reflected i ndia’s momentum and potential.
this year’s budget was remarkable for its clarity, 
equity, simplicity and effectiveness.
empowering Women
gender Budgeting is a powerful tool for 
achieving gender mainstreaming to ensure that 
the development benefits reach women as much 
saBKa saath saBKa viKas 
throUgh Union BUdget
T
Focused on empowering women, developing the skills of the youth, 
providing funds for developing tribal infrastructure and improving 
employment opportunities – the budget has underlined the foremost 
priorities of the government in terms of taking the development  
benefits to the vulnerable sections. 
dr shahin raZi naUshin raZi UGC Emeritus Fellow and Visiting Professor, Arka Jain University. Email: shahin.razi@gmail.com
Research Scholar. Email: naushin.razi.1@gmail.com
as men. the rationale for gender budgeting arises 
from the recognition of the fact that national budget 
impact men and women differently through the 
pattern of resource allocation. Women constitute 
48% of india’s population, but they lag behind men 
on many social indicators like health, education, 
economic opportunities, etc; thus, gender budgeting 
is important.
Focused on empowering women, developing 
the skills of the youth, providing funds for developing 
tribal infrastructure and improving employment 
opportunities – the budget did a lot to promote 
the notion of equity and give every indian the 
opportunity to reach their full potential. to upskill 
the country’s youth for domestic and international 
opportunities, 30 advanced skilling centres are 
envisaged which will  open new avenues for the 
youth to get highly skilled jobs. 
new Saving instruments  
t he union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman 
announced a new small savings scheme with a fixed 
interest rate and fixed tenure to encourage more 
savings among women and girls.
68 March 2023
to commemorate Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav, 
a one-time new small savings scheme, Mahila 
Samman Savings Certificate, will be available for 
two years up to March 2025. it will offer a deposit 
facility of up to rs 2 lakh in the name of women or 
girls for a tenure of 2 years at a fixed interest rate of 
7.5 percent with a partial withdrawal option. 
At present only Sukanya Samriddhi Scheme 
allows a guardian to open the account of a girl 
child with a maximum investment limit of rs 1.5 
lakh in a financial year and an interest rate of 7.6 
per cent per annum.
t he Finance Minister also announced changes 
to the Senior Citizens Savings Scheme doubling 
the maximum deposit limit under the scheme. t he 
maximum deposit limit for Senior Citizen Savings 
Scheme will be enhanced from rs 15 lakh to  
rs 30 lakh.
An individual above 60 years of age or retired 
civilian employees above 55 years can open an 
account under SCSS Scheme can subject to the 
condition that investment must be made within 
one month of receipt of retirement benefits.  
retired defence employees above 50 years but 
below 60 years can also subscribe to SCSS subject 
to the condition that investment must be made 
within one month of receipt of retirement benefits. 
SCSS has a tenure of 5 years and offers  an interest 
rate of 8 per cent per annum.
While the investment limit has been doubled, 
the tax exemption of rs 15 lakh available on SCSS 
investment under section 80C remains unchanged.
increasing the limit of SCSS from rs 15 lakh to  
rs 30 lakh is an important announcement to help 
senior citizens and retired investors plan their 
investments in safe instruments. the limit for the 
monthly income account scheme has also been 
enhanced. the maximum deposit limit for Monthly 
income Account Scheme will be enhanced from rs 
4.5 lakh to rs 9 lakh for a single account and from rs 
9 lakh to rs 15 lakh for a joint account.
MiS account can be opened by a single individual 
or jointly up to 3 adults or a guardian on behalf of 
a minor. t he investments are in multiple of rs 1000 
and the scheme offers an interest rate of 7.1 per cent 
per annum payable monthly.
MiS is one of the most popular small savings 
schemes with an outstanding amount of rs 
234825 crore as of February 2022 and SCSS had an 
outstanding of rs 117239 crore as of February 2022. 
the total small savings outstanding as of February 
2022 was rs 1426737 crore.
the budget has envisaged the world’s largest 
food storage scheme within the co-operative sector.  
the budget has also announced an ambitious 
scheme to form new primary co-operatives. it will 
expand the area of milk & fish production along with 
agriculture, thus helping farmers, those engaged 
in annual husbandry and fishermen and women 
farmers to get better prices for their produce.
t he budget also promotes green growth, green 
economy, green infrastructure and green jobs for a 
sustainable future.
through this year’s budget, the indian 
government has reaffirmed its commitment towards 
inclusive development underlining the seven 
priorities for the ‘Amrit Kaal’. the union Budget 
focuses on empowering  youth and reaching the last 
mile through schemes like PM Kaushal Vikas Yojana 
4.0, which  aim to skilling lakhs of youth in new 
courses like coding, Ai, robotics, 3D printing, etc. 
Further, PM Vishwa Karma Kaushal Samman 
package for helping traditional artisans and 
craftspeople and PM PVtg (Particularly Vulnerable 
tribal groups) programme to support the tribal 
groups has been announced to enable economic 
69 March 2023
upliftment of backward and marginalized sections 
of the population.
the Centre’s focus on green growth – to help 
reduce india’s carbon intensity and generate large-
scale green jobs is bound to make the economy 
future ready. Apart from the recently launched green 
hydrogen mission, the government’s announcement 
of customs duty exemption on importing machinery 
required to manufacture electric vehicle batteries 
will be a boon for green mobility. Further, to promote 
green fuel, the government has announced central 
excise duty exemption for blended compressed 
natural gas, in addition to other measures for 
promoting the circular economy, such as establishing 
500 new waste-to-wealth plants.
At a time when the global economy is facing 
headwinds, it is heartening to see that the 
government has not shied away from supporting 
domestic economic activity by maintaining the 
capex support but has gone a step ahead and 
revised the direct tax slabs to support consumption 
activity, especially among the indian middle class. 
this feat becomes even more commendable in 
cognizance of the fact that  the government has 
adhered to its fiscal deficit target of 6.4% of gDP 
for FY 23 and intends to reduce this to 5.9% in FY 
24, thereby sticking to its path of fiscal prudence. 
overall, with this pragmatic budget and its 
strong fundamentals, the indian economy is well 
established in a safe place and emerges as a ‘star’ 
among its global peers.
union Budget 2023-24 is bold in its ideas yet 
conservative in its calculus, ambitious in its strategies 
and firmly anchored in reality. i t successfully 
captures the uncertainties enshrouding the global 
macroeconomic outlook while providing a road map 
for fostering resilience and accelerating growth as 
the indian economy moves towards Amrit Kaal.
this budget is being hailed as a 'Budget for 
All', along the lines of Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas 
(with everyone, for the development of all), as it 
has something to offer to all sections of society. 
the focus of the budget has transitioned from 
facilitating recovery of the Covid-affected economy 
in the last two years to laying down both hard and 
soft tracks for increasing economies of scale and 
ensuring long-term growth.
the document provides a clear vision, as given 
by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, of the kind of 
society india aspires to be in 2047. india@100 will 
rest on the pillars of inclusivity and prosperity, 
where fruits of development reach all regions and 
citizens, especially our youth, women, farmers, 
other Backward Classes, Scheduled Castes, and 
Scheduled tribes. As reflected through the first two 
priorities of “inclusive development” and “reaching 
the last mile” , the budget lays out several measures 
for empowering vulnerable tribal groups, women, 
youth, and micro, small and medium enterprises.
t he budget has a strong focus on empowering 
individuals and local entrepreneurs by leveraging 
technology, and, to a lesser extent, finance. i t lays 
out policies for empowering our youth and helping 
the Amrit Peedhi (the golden generation) unlock 
their potential. it draws attention to the importance 
of skilling for youth, women, craftspersons and self-
help groups (SHgs) to facilitate job creation at scale. 
Special mention must be made of PM Vishwakarma 
KAushal Samman (PM–ViKAS) for skilling traditional 
artisans and craftspersons, the Agriculture 
Accelerator Fund to encourage agri startups by 
young entrepreneurs in rural areas,  and sector-
specific skilling and entrepreneurship development 
for the tourism sector under the Dekho Apna Desh 
initiative.
t he budget for fiscal year (FY) 24 prioritises youth 
power and modern skill development through the 
PM Kaushal Vikas Yojana 4.0 and the Amrit Peedhi 
programme. the scheme will equip young people 
with skills in coding, Artificial i ntelligence, and 
robotics, among others and provide stipends through 
the National Apprenticeship Promotion Scheme. t he 
tourism sector will benefit from a skilled workforce 
and young entrepreneurs will receive marketing 
support through the proposed unity malls (through 
the one District, one Product initiative). t hese are all 
the force multipliers budget wishes to unleash over 
time to compensate for external headwinds.
overall, Budget 2023-24 is anchored in reality, 
transparency, and achievable goals.  it is economically 
smart, reflects political confidence , is fiscally credible 
and emphasises gender equality and inclusiveness.  
it is an Amrit Kaal road map for india to achieve 
glory. t he Budget 2023-24 is truly an Amrit Budget-  
A foundation for Vishwaguru Bharat.                             ?
71 March 2023
he budget plays an important role in 
the overall development and socio-
economic transformation of the 
country. the impact of the budget 
should not be understood on the basis of the 
amount of fund/total fund allocated to various 
sectors and departments, rather needs to be 
evaluated how a particular expenditure would 
affect the country’s long-term growth in terms of 
inclusive and sustainable development. From an 
economic perspective, the impact of the budget 
must be reviewed from the viewpoint of fiscal 
deficit and capital expenditure. the development 
of our nation depends upon fiscal discipline and 
fiscal consolidation.
Fiscal deficit and a nalysis
Fiscal deficit indicates the total borrowing 
requirements of a country during a fiscal year. 
It is used as an instrument to measure fiscal 
discipline and sets the fiscal roadmap of the 
country in terms of its current needs and future 
liabilities. t his furnishes a more holistic view of 
the government’s funding situation in terms of 
borrowings. 
Fiscal deFicit policy shiFt  
and sUstainaBle development T
A country’s budget is not just a government’s receipts-expenditure 
statement but a potent tool that determines the country’s destiny and sets 
the roadmap for fiscal sustainability. The success of a budget is measured 
by the outcome and its impact on the economy as a whole, not just by 
the total outlay. Over the years, due to global uncertainty and internal 
economic upheavals, especially post-Covid, fiscal policy intervention has 
become inevitable to ascertain a sustainable growth trajectory. 
dr amiya KUmar mohapatra The author is Professor, Jaipuria Institute of Management, Indore. He has co-authored five books and published 
twenty-five edited books. He has also published more than 100 articles/research papers in various indexed 
journals/magazines/books/newspapers of repute. Email: amiyacademics@gmail.com
the extent and magnitude of fiscal deficit is 
determined by two components: revenue deficit 
and capital expenditure. in the Budget 2023-24, 
the proposed fiscal deficit is 5.9 per cent of gDP 
while it is 6.4 per cent for FY 2022-23. Considering 
the post-Covid impact, global headwinds, russia-
ukraine war, and other geopolitical tensions, 
trading on a fiscal deficit of 5.9 per cent is not too 
high, yet will remain a cause for concern. However, 
the government has to ensure that it does not 
deviate from the estimated deficit, otherwise it may 
escalate the economic crisis, leading to inflation and 
other fiscal disturbances. Further the government 
must spend on investment and welfare schemes 
to foster faster income, output and employment in 
the path of fiscal sustainability. only then would the 
higher fiscal deficit provision be justified, which is 
over and above 3 per cent of gDP as prescribed by 
FrBMA-2003.
the seriousness of achieving fiscal discipline 
rests on how to address the gap between the 
estimated and the actual fiscal deficit so as to get 
the desired result. Despite of all the effort and trade-
offs, adherence to a high fiscal deficit over a period 
Page 5


67 March 2023
he stable, consistent, inclusive and 
gender-oriented budget reflected 
india’s momentum and potential. 
Several measures have been 
announced in the budget to empower vulnerable 
tribal groups, women, youth, and micro, small 
and medium enterprises. in addition, the budget 
considers the uncertainties prevailing in the global 
macroeconomic outlook and provides a road map 
for fostering resilience and accelerating growth as 
the indian economy moves towards Amrit Kaal.
inclusive development ensures that all 
marginalised and excluded groups are stakeholders 
in development processes. india is an inexhaustible 
engine of economic development and opportunities. 
t he stable, consistent, inclusive and gender-oriented 
budget reflected i ndia’s momentum and potential.
this year’s budget was remarkable for its clarity, 
equity, simplicity and effectiveness.
empowering Women
gender Budgeting is a powerful tool for 
achieving gender mainstreaming to ensure that 
the development benefits reach women as much 
saBKa saath saBKa viKas 
throUgh Union BUdget
T
Focused on empowering women, developing the skills of the youth, 
providing funds for developing tribal infrastructure and improving 
employment opportunities – the budget has underlined the foremost 
priorities of the government in terms of taking the development  
benefits to the vulnerable sections. 
dr shahin raZi naUshin raZi UGC Emeritus Fellow and Visiting Professor, Arka Jain University. Email: shahin.razi@gmail.com
Research Scholar. Email: naushin.razi.1@gmail.com
as men. the rationale for gender budgeting arises 
from the recognition of the fact that national budget 
impact men and women differently through the 
pattern of resource allocation. Women constitute 
48% of india’s population, but they lag behind men 
on many social indicators like health, education, 
economic opportunities, etc; thus, gender budgeting 
is important.
Focused on empowering women, developing 
the skills of the youth, providing funds for developing 
tribal infrastructure and improving employment 
opportunities – the budget did a lot to promote 
the notion of equity and give every indian the 
opportunity to reach their full potential. to upskill 
the country’s youth for domestic and international 
opportunities, 30 advanced skilling centres are 
envisaged which will  open new avenues for the 
youth to get highly skilled jobs. 
new Saving instruments  
t he union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman 
announced a new small savings scheme with a fixed 
interest rate and fixed tenure to encourage more 
savings among women and girls.
68 March 2023
to commemorate Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav, 
a one-time new small savings scheme, Mahila 
Samman Savings Certificate, will be available for 
two years up to March 2025. it will offer a deposit 
facility of up to rs 2 lakh in the name of women or 
girls for a tenure of 2 years at a fixed interest rate of 
7.5 percent with a partial withdrawal option. 
At present only Sukanya Samriddhi Scheme 
allows a guardian to open the account of a girl 
child with a maximum investment limit of rs 1.5 
lakh in a financial year and an interest rate of 7.6 
per cent per annum.
t he Finance Minister also announced changes 
to the Senior Citizens Savings Scheme doubling 
the maximum deposit limit under the scheme. t he 
maximum deposit limit for Senior Citizen Savings 
Scheme will be enhanced from rs 15 lakh to  
rs 30 lakh.
An individual above 60 years of age or retired 
civilian employees above 55 years can open an 
account under SCSS Scheme can subject to the 
condition that investment must be made within 
one month of receipt of retirement benefits.  
retired defence employees above 50 years but 
below 60 years can also subscribe to SCSS subject 
to the condition that investment must be made 
within one month of receipt of retirement benefits. 
SCSS has a tenure of 5 years and offers  an interest 
rate of 8 per cent per annum.
While the investment limit has been doubled, 
the tax exemption of rs 15 lakh available on SCSS 
investment under section 80C remains unchanged.
increasing the limit of SCSS from rs 15 lakh to  
rs 30 lakh is an important announcement to help 
senior citizens and retired investors plan their 
investments in safe instruments. the limit for the 
monthly income account scheme has also been 
enhanced. the maximum deposit limit for Monthly 
income Account Scheme will be enhanced from rs 
4.5 lakh to rs 9 lakh for a single account and from rs 
9 lakh to rs 15 lakh for a joint account.
MiS account can be opened by a single individual 
or jointly up to 3 adults or a guardian on behalf of 
a minor. t he investments are in multiple of rs 1000 
and the scheme offers an interest rate of 7.1 per cent 
per annum payable monthly.
MiS is one of the most popular small savings 
schemes with an outstanding amount of rs 
234825 crore as of February 2022 and SCSS had an 
outstanding of rs 117239 crore as of February 2022. 
the total small savings outstanding as of February 
2022 was rs 1426737 crore.
the budget has envisaged the world’s largest 
food storage scheme within the co-operative sector.  
the budget has also announced an ambitious 
scheme to form new primary co-operatives. it will 
expand the area of milk & fish production along with 
agriculture, thus helping farmers, those engaged 
in annual husbandry and fishermen and women 
farmers to get better prices for their produce.
t he budget also promotes green growth, green 
economy, green infrastructure and green jobs for a 
sustainable future.
through this year’s budget, the indian 
government has reaffirmed its commitment towards 
inclusive development underlining the seven 
priorities for the ‘Amrit Kaal’. the union Budget 
focuses on empowering  youth and reaching the last 
mile through schemes like PM Kaushal Vikas Yojana 
4.0, which  aim to skilling lakhs of youth in new 
courses like coding, Ai, robotics, 3D printing, etc. 
Further, PM Vishwa Karma Kaushal Samman 
package for helping traditional artisans and 
craftspeople and PM PVtg (Particularly Vulnerable 
tribal groups) programme to support the tribal 
groups has been announced to enable economic 
69 March 2023
upliftment of backward and marginalized sections 
of the population.
the Centre’s focus on green growth – to help 
reduce india’s carbon intensity and generate large-
scale green jobs is bound to make the economy 
future ready. Apart from the recently launched green 
hydrogen mission, the government’s announcement 
of customs duty exemption on importing machinery 
required to manufacture electric vehicle batteries 
will be a boon for green mobility. Further, to promote 
green fuel, the government has announced central 
excise duty exemption for blended compressed 
natural gas, in addition to other measures for 
promoting the circular economy, such as establishing 
500 new waste-to-wealth plants.
At a time when the global economy is facing 
headwinds, it is heartening to see that the 
government has not shied away from supporting 
domestic economic activity by maintaining the 
capex support but has gone a step ahead and 
revised the direct tax slabs to support consumption 
activity, especially among the indian middle class. 
this feat becomes even more commendable in 
cognizance of the fact that  the government has 
adhered to its fiscal deficit target of 6.4% of gDP 
for FY 23 and intends to reduce this to 5.9% in FY 
24, thereby sticking to its path of fiscal prudence. 
overall, with this pragmatic budget and its 
strong fundamentals, the indian economy is well 
established in a safe place and emerges as a ‘star’ 
among its global peers.
union Budget 2023-24 is bold in its ideas yet 
conservative in its calculus, ambitious in its strategies 
and firmly anchored in reality. i t successfully 
captures the uncertainties enshrouding the global 
macroeconomic outlook while providing a road map 
for fostering resilience and accelerating growth as 
the indian economy moves towards Amrit Kaal.
this budget is being hailed as a 'Budget for 
All', along the lines of Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas 
(with everyone, for the development of all), as it 
has something to offer to all sections of society. 
the focus of the budget has transitioned from 
facilitating recovery of the Covid-affected economy 
in the last two years to laying down both hard and 
soft tracks for increasing economies of scale and 
ensuring long-term growth.
the document provides a clear vision, as given 
by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, of the kind of 
society india aspires to be in 2047. india@100 will 
rest on the pillars of inclusivity and prosperity, 
where fruits of development reach all regions and 
citizens, especially our youth, women, farmers, 
other Backward Classes, Scheduled Castes, and 
Scheduled tribes. As reflected through the first two 
priorities of “inclusive development” and “reaching 
the last mile” , the budget lays out several measures 
for empowering vulnerable tribal groups, women, 
youth, and micro, small and medium enterprises.
t he budget has a strong focus on empowering 
individuals and local entrepreneurs by leveraging 
technology, and, to a lesser extent, finance. i t lays 
out policies for empowering our youth and helping 
the Amrit Peedhi (the golden generation) unlock 
their potential. it draws attention to the importance 
of skilling for youth, women, craftspersons and self-
help groups (SHgs) to facilitate job creation at scale. 
Special mention must be made of PM Vishwakarma 
KAushal Samman (PM–ViKAS) for skilling traditional 
artisans and craftspersons, the Agriculture 
Accelerator Fund to encourage agri startups by 
young entrepreneurs in rural areas,  and sector-
specific skilling and entrepreneurship development 
for the tourism sector under the Dekho Apna Desh 
initiative.
t he budget for fiscal year (FY) 24 prioritises youth 
power and modern skill development through the 
PM Kaushal Vikas Yojana 4.0 and the Amrit Peedhi 
programme. the scheme will equip young people 
with skills in coding, Artificial i ntelligence, and 
robotics, among others and provide stipends through 
the National Apprenticeship Promotion Scheme. t he 
tourism sector will benefit from a skilled workforce 
and young entrepreneurs will receive marketing 
support through the proposed unity malls (through 
the one District, one Product initiative). t hese are all 
the force multipliers budget wishes to unleash over 
time to compensate for external headwinds.
overall, Budget 2023-24 is anchored in reality, 
transparency, and achievable goals.  it is economically 
smart, reflects political confidence , is fiscally credible 
and emphasises gender equality and inclusiveness.  
it is an Amrit Kaal road map for india to achieve 
glory. t he Budget 2023-24 is truly an Amrit Budget-  
A foundation for Vishwaguru Bharat.                             ?
71 March 2023
he budget plays an important role in 
the overall development and socio-
economic transformation of the 
country. the impact of the budget 
should not be understood on the basis of the 
amount of fund/total fund allocated to various 
sectors and departments, rather needs to be 
evaluated how a particular expenditure would 
affect the country’s long-term growth in terms of 
inclusive and sustainable development. From an 
economic perspective, the impact of the budget 
must be reviewed from the viewpoint of fiscal 
deficit and capital expenditure. the development 
of our nation depends upon fiscal discipline and 
fiscal consolidation.
Fiscal deficit and a nalysis
Fiscal deficit indicates the total borrowing 
requirements of a country during a fiscal year. 
It is used as an instrument to measure fiscal 
discipline and sets the fiscal roadmap of the 
country in terms of its current needs and future 
liabilities. t his furnishes a more holistic view of 
the government’s funding situation in terms of 
borrowings. 
Fiscal deFicit policy shiFt  
and sUstainaBle development T
A country’s budget is not just a government’s receipts-expenditure 
statement but a potent tool that determines the country’s destiny and sets 
the roadmap for fiscal sustainability. The success of a budget is measured 
by the outcome and its impact on the economy as a whole, not just by 
the total outlay. Over the years, due to global uncertainty and internal 
economic upheavals, especially post-Covid, fiscal policy intervention has 
become inevitable to ascertain a sustainable growth trajectory. 
dr amiya KUmar mohapatra The author is Professor, Jaipuria Institute of Management, Indore. He has co-authored five books and published 
twenty-five edited books. He has also published more than 100 articles/research papers in various indexed 
journals/magazines/books/newspapers of repute. Email: amiyacademics@gmail.com
the extent and magnitude of fiscal deficit is 
determined by two components: revenue deficit 
and capital expenditure. in the Budget 2023-24, 
the proposed fiscal deficit is 5.9 per cent of gDP 
while it is 6.4 per cent for FY 2022-23. Considering 
the post-Covid impact, global headwinds, russia-
ukraine war, and other geopolitical tensions, 
trading on a fiscal deficit of 5.9 per cent is not too 
high, yet will remain a cause for concern. However, 
the government has to ensure that it does not 
deviate from the estimated deficit, otherwise it may 
escalate the economic crisis, leading to inflation and 
other fiscal disturbances. Further the government 
must spend on investment and welfare schemes 
to foster faster income, output and employment in 
the path of fiscal sustainability. only then would the 
higher fiscal deficit provision be justified, which is 
over and above 3 per cent of gDP as prescribed by 
FrBMA-2003.
the seriousness of achieving fiscal discipline 
rests on how to address the gap between the 
estimated and the actual fiscal deficit so as to get 
the desired result. Despite of all the effort and trade-
offs, adherence to a high fiscal deficit over a period 
72 March 2023
of time reflects the fiscal distress of an economy.
Fiscal deficit and c apital expenditure t rade-off
in spite of the well-placed FrBMA-2003, 
recommended fiscal deficit of 3.0 per cent of gDP 
is still a target even after 20 years. it may be due 
to a lack of seriousness or various macroeconomic 
disturbances and economic instabilities. However, 
to reduce its ill effects, government has found an 
alternative of higher capital expenditure in recent 
years. to lessen the negative impact of the fiscal 
deficit, the government has planned for higher 
capital expenditure of rs 10 lakh crore, which is 
33 per cent higher than last year’s figure and 3.3 
per cent of gDP. this will be almost three times 
the outlay in 2019-20. t he overall ‘effective Capital 
expenditure’ of the Centre is budgeted at rs 13.7 
lakh crore, which will be 4.5 per cent of gDP .
in the current context, a need for higher public 
spending is believed to be crucial for providing the 
required impetus to economic growth. A sustained 
increase in investment will strengthen infrastructure 
including power, transport and railways and 
contribute to higher gDP/employment/output 
through its multiplier effects and crowd-in private 
investments, and provide a cushion against global 
headwinds. it will enhance the long-term supply-
side productive capacity and will promote exports. 
this is further justified in terms of including path 
breaking policies, PM gatiShaki, National Logistics 
Policy, PLi Schemes and also help strengthen 
manufacturing infra-base and value-chain 
efficiency. i n this Budget, more fiscal freedom has 
been given to all the states and accordingly each 
state has been allowed to have the leverage of a 
fiscal deficit of 3.5 percent of their SgDP . 
revenue deficit and Sustainable Path 
Revenue deficit reflects the excess of revenue 
expenditure over revenue receipts of the 
government. A higher revenue deficit compels 
the government to adhere to borrowings to 
meet the revenue shortfall. the government has 
proposed a tight revenue deficit of 2.9 per cent for 
FY 2023-24 compared to 3.8 per cent in FY 2022-
23, despite various pressing needs of social sectors, 
welfare schemes, food and fertiliser subsidies, etc. 
t he sustained decrease in revenue deficit over the 
recent years is undoubtedly a welcome step for 
fiscal stability and consolidation.
Although the mark/target per cent of revenue 
deficit is neither clearly spelt-out nor binding by 
any fiscal and regulatory framework/act, yet played 
a decisive role in setting the fiscal deficit and the 
road for fiscal prudence and fiscal sustainability. 
therefore, fiscal prudence depends on how the 
government manages the revenue deficit in 
particular, and especially the revenue expenditure. 
r evenue deficit can be reduced by higher revenue 
mobilisation through tax buoyancy & wider tax 
base and with quality tax administration and by 
reprioritising expenditure through expenditure 
t able 1: estimated Fiscal deficit (Fd ) as per cent of gdP
year (Be)
2004-05
2005-06
2006-07
2007-08
2008-09
2009-10
2010-11
2011-12
2012-13
2013-14
2014-15
2015-16
2016-17
2017-18
2018-19
2019-20
2020-21
2021-22
2022-23
2023-24
Fiscal Deficit (%)
4.4
4.3
3.8
3.3
2.5
6.8
5.5
4.6
5.1
4.8
4.1
3.9
3.5
3.2
3.3
3.3
3.5
6.8
6.4
5.9
Source: Author’s Compilation from Budget Documents of GoI 
t able 2: estimated revenue deficit (rd ) as per cent of gdP
year (Be)
2004-05
2005-06
2006-07
2007-08
2008-09
2009-10
2010-11
2011-12
2012-13
2013-14
2014-15
2015-16
2016-17
2017-18
2018-19
2019-20
2020-21
2021-22
2022-23
2023-24
r evenue Deficit (%)
2.5
2.7
2.1
1.5
1.0
4.8
4.0
3.4
3.4
3.3
2.9
2.8
2.3
1.9
2.2
2.3
2.7
5.1
3.8
2.9
Source: Author’s Compilation from Budget Document of GoI