Budget Before 2024 Lok Sabha Election, What To Expect?

As India heads to its 2024 Lok Sabha election, the BJP government will present the interim Budget on February 1 aiming to woo the voters with new spending measures.

It is expected that the Budget will focus on infrastructure before the general election while narrowing the budget gap.

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will announce the Budget for 2024/25 on February 1. Aiming for the Lok Sabha election, the government is likely to strike a balance between pre-election political messaging, fiscal consolidation needs, and continued focus on the apex, said Samiran Chakraborty, an economist with Citigroup to Reuters.

To attract the women voters of the country, the government might likely double the annual payout to female farmers.

As per the Reuters report, the government is expected to up the annual payout to 12,000 rupees and the policy will only cost $1.44 billion annually, a meager amount in the government’s overall spending. The government may also keep the major subsidies in check and extend the free foodgrain program.

The free foodgrain program has been extended for the next five years which will only incur very little additional spending to the government.

The government has also planned to reduce the fiscal deficit to keep debt under control. As per the economists surveyed by Bloomberg, the 5.9% deficit target for the current fiscal year ending in March is likely to be met.

The lowering of the fiscal deposit in an election year shows that the government will not be relying on social spending to woo the voters. In an attempt to draw foreign and domestic manufacturers to invest in the country, the government is expected to spend heavily on infrastructure to tackle the high unemployment crisis among youths by creating job opportunities.

The government”s officials has said that India is likely to stay away from major announcements on privatisation owing to elections.