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The Budget gives “new wings” to the aspirations of the poor, he said, citing measures aimed at giving a boost to farmers, infrastructure, rural sector and small and medium enterprises. Shah also posted a number of tweets as Finance Minister Arun Jaitley presented his fifth straight budget today to highlight the significance of the measures, especially those for the weaker sections.
This is the last full-fledged budget of the BJP-led NDA government before the next Lok Sabha polls, scheduled for 2019, and the ruling alliance hopes that its emphasis on the rural sector will help it connect with the masses as the elections approach.
The BJP president said the “record allocation” to the rural sector and agriculture would lead to unprecedented rural development and agricultural growth and asserted that the consistent focus on these sectors had been a hallmark of the government.
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There was a “tremendous stress” on improving the ease of living for the common man and this was happening by improving affordability and access and would give a boost to the aspirations of the common man, Shah added. He also termed the government’s “Ayushman Bharat” scheme an unparallelled initiative to ensure “health insurance as well as health assurance”.
Protecting 10 crore families, which is about 40 per cent of India’s population, with a health insurance cover of Rs 5 lakh per family, was a global first, he said. The scheme had received a good response from the people, who were calling it “ModiCare”, he added.
The “Saubhagya Yojana”, which aims at providing electricity connection to 4 crore families, reflected sensitivity and the commitment of the Modi government in “brightening the lives of the poor and bringing them into the mainstream of India s development”, he said.
The Modi government s decision to provide 8 crore LPG connections under the “PM Ujjwala Yojana” was a landmark decision and testimony to its commitment towards the empowerment of women and improving the quality of lives of the poor, both urban and rural, the BJP president said.
The proposed “Eklavya Schools” in tribal blocks reflected the govt’s resolve to uplift tribal communities and help them secure a better future, he said. The “significant benefits” to the MSME sector would not only give relief to small and medium entrepreneurs but also help them achieve new heights of development, he added.
“I thank the government for the budgetary allocation of Rs 3 lakh crore under the ‘Mudra Yojana’ for the year 2018- 2019 that will boost employment generation. This will especially benefit women, OBC, SC & ST, as so far 76 per cent of loan accounts are of women and more than 50 per cent belong to SC, ST & OBC,” Shah said.
Building a solid Infrastructure for a ‘New India’ has always been the focus of the government and the BJP welcomed and appreciated the record allotment to infrastructure and hastening the pace of completion, Shah said. He also referred to the mention of the “Swachh Bharat” scheme in the Budget, and said it had been one of India’s biggest success stories.
Six crore toilets built under the mission so far had helped poor women lead a life of dignity and the proposed 2 crore toilets for 2018-2019 would add another chapter to this success story, he said. Shah also highlighted the budgetary allocations of Rs 56,619 crore and Rs 39135 crore for SC and ST welfare and said these reflected the government’s commitment to uplifting marginalised and other deprived sections of the people.
Reducing corporate tax to 25 per cent was a major initiative towards creating a competitive environment for doing business in India and was in line with global standards, he said. “The Modi government has continuously improved fiscal deficit since its first budget. The target of 3.3 per cent for 2018-19 is another effort in the same direction and will certainly improve investor confidence in the Indian economy,” he said.