By Deepak Sharma, Zone President, Greater India, MD & CEO, Schneider Electric India
“The interim budget provides a robust blueprint for Viksit Bharat. It comprehensively addresses all sectors of the economy, with a specific emphasis on fostering innovation, research, and entrepreneurship. Setting up a corpus of 1Lakh crore & providing 50-year low interest loan for tech-savvy youth will scale up research and innovation. The budget also demonstrates a noteworthy commitment to sustainability, particularly in the energy sector. Promotion of solar rooftop installations, provision of 300 units free power every month to 1 crore households, mandatory blending of Compressed Biogas (CBG) with CNG & PNG, and incentives for Offshore wind energy will ensure energy accessibility, affordability, and availability. There is also a noteworthy focus on strengthening of the EV ecosystem by supporting the charger manufacturing infrastructure. Increasing the no of EV buses on the roads is a welcome environmentally friendly step.
Union Budget stresses on accelerating infrastructure development in cities to cater to the growing population needs. The affordable housing scheme for middle class will help in improving their living standards. Steps like expansion of urban infrastructure with metro rail , NaMo Bharat Trains and expansion of existing airports under UDAAN scheme will ease commute and boost connectivity.”