Union Budget 2025 Live Updates: The Finance Minister highlighted the government’s commitment to supporting food processing as part of its focus on empowering the poor. A National Institute of Food Technology, Entrepreneurship, and Management will be established in Bihar, aimed at boosting food processing activities across the eastern region. This initiative will have two key outcomes: first, it will enhance farmers’ incomes by adding value to their produce, and second, it will create skilling, entrepreneurship, and employment opportunities for the youth in the region.
Budget 2025 Live Updates: For India’s footwear and leather sector
Union Budget 2025 Live Updates: The Finance Minister announced that the government will implement specific policy and facilitation measures to boost the productivity, quality, and competitiveness of India’s footwear and leather sector. A focused products scheme will be introduced to support design capacity, component manufacturing, and machinery required for producing non-leather quality footwear, in addition to supporting leather footwear and products. This scheme is expected to create employment for 22 lakh people, generate over ₹400 crore, and achieve exports of over ₹1.1 lakh crore. In addition, measures will be introduced for the toy sector, building on the National Action Plan for Toys. A new scheme will aim to establish India as a global hub for toys, focusing on developing clusters, skills, and a manufacturing ecosystem that will produce high-quality, innovative, and sustainable toys, representing the “Made in India” brand.
Budget 2025 Live Updates: Big announcements for the second engine of growth – MSMEs
Moving to MSMEs, the second engine of growth, the focus will be on the 5.7 crore MSMEs, which include over one crore registered businesses employing 7.5 crore people and contributing 36% to India’s manufacturing. These MSMEs are crucial in positioning India as a global manufacturing hub, responsible for 45% of the nation’s exports. To boost their growth and efficiency, the government will enhance the investment and turnover limits for MSMEs, increasing them by 2.5 times and 2 times, respectively. This move is expected to empower MSMEs to scale up, innovate, and generate more employment opportunities for the youth.
Budget 2025 Live Updates
What are the expectations this year? The Union Budget 2025 is expected to focus on boosting India’s manufacturing sector under the ‘Viksit Bharat’ goal. The Budget is also expected to focus on easing the middle-class tax burden, boosting consumption, and maintaining fiscal prudence. There is a strong push for investment in manufacturing, infrastructure, and job creation. Custom duty reforms, skill development, and agricultural value chain enhancements are also likely.
Credit guarantee cover to be enhanced for MSMEs and start-ups, says Nirmala Sitharaman