The government will set up a venture capital fund of Rs 1,000 crore to promote space technology. Several stakeholders, including the Indian Space Association as well as the heads of the Indian National Space Promotion and Authorisation Centre (IN-SPACe) and Pixxel Space, said it would fuel growth and development of the sector. According to IN-SPACe chairperson Pawan Goenka, the announcement of a focused venture fund of Rs 1,000 crore will give a boost to new entrepreneurs and non-government entities in the space sector.
National Cooperation Policy on the cards
The government will bring a National Cooperation Policy for the overall development of the country, Finance Minister Nirmamala Sitharaman said. She said the Centre would promote digital public infrastructure for agriculture in partnership with states, while Jan Samarth-based Kisan Credit Card will be introduced in five states. Besides, the government will strengthen production, storage and marketing of pulses, while fast-track growth of rural economy and creation of employment opportunities will be the policy goal, she said.
Finance Minister lists govt’s nine priorities
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Tuesday announced nine priorities in the Union Budget for generating ample opportunities in the economy. The nine priorities include productivity, jobs, social justice, urban development, energy security, infrastructure, innovation and reforms. Sitharaman said the government undertakes comprehensive review of research to develop climate-resilient seeds. In the next two years, one crore farmers will be initiated in natural farming, she said. Large scale vegetable production clusters would be promoted to increase output, she stated. The government will release new 109 high-yielding, climate-resilient seeds for 32 field and horticulture crops.
FM adopted Congress ideas, says Chidambaram
Former Finance Minister P Chidambaram took a dig at the Centre over the Budget and accused Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman of virtually adopting the ideas from Congress’s 2024 Lok Sabha manifesto. Addressing a joint press conference in the national capital along with Congress leader Supriya Shrinate, Chidambaram said, “I have already tweeted that I am happy that the Finance Minister had an opportunity to read the Congress’ manifesto after the Lok Sabha elections.”
ASI gets more money for heritage preservation
The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) has been allocated Rs 1,273.91 crore in the Budget 2024-25 as compared to the Rs 1,131.08 crore in the previous budget. The more than 160-year-old ASI works for protection, preservation, and conservation of centrally protected monuments and sites. Currently, there are 3,697 ancient monuments and archaeological sites under its ambit.
Bizmen hail reduction in TDS on e-com operators
MSME players on Tuesday said measures like massive reduction in TDS on e-commerce operators demonstrate the government’s commitment to strengthen small enterprises and generate more jobs in the key sector of the economy. “We welcome the government’s decision in the Budget to reduce TDS to 0.1 per cent for e-commerce operators and to develop a new credit assessment model based on the digital footprints of MSMEs,” said Anil Bhardwaj, secretary general of Federation of Indian Micro Small and Medium Enterprises.
Allocation for Minority Affairs Ministry increased
The budgetary allocation for the Ministry of Minority Affairs has increased by Rs 574.31 crore to Rs 3,183.24 crore as against the revised estimate of Rs 2,608.93 crore in 2023-24. Of the proposed allocation for the ministry, Rs 1,575.72 crore is for education empowerment. The allocation for Pre-Matric Scholarship for Minorities is Rs 326.16 crore and for Post-Matric Scholarship for Minorities is Rs 1,145.38 crore.
