Hero Enterprise Chairman Sunil Kant Munjal says interim budget 'encouraging' and 'directionally sound'

New Delhi [India], February 1 : Hero Enterprise, Chairman and Chairman, CII Public Policy Council Sunil Kant Munjal, lauded the Interim Budget 2024 presented by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, calling it "responsible" and "directionally sound."
He particularly appreciated the government's focus on infrastructure, agriculture, and private enterprise, while maintaining fiscal discipline. Munjal also praised the government for resisting populist measures despite the upcoming elections.
"I think it is all a very encouraging budget and the government has managed, with the spend of eleven lakh crores, to contain both the fiscal deficit and the revenue deficit. Because these are critical for India's rating globally and for the cost of funding for indian industry and for Indians," said Sunil Kant Munjal.
Meanwhile, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman pegged the fiscal deficit target for 2024-25 at 5.1 per cent of gross domestic product (GDP).
In 2023-24, the government pegged the fiscal deficit target for 2023-24 at 5.9 per cent of gross domestic product (GDP). Today, Sitharaman said that the fiscal deficit of 2023-24 was downwardly revised to 5.8 per cent.
The difference between total revenue and total expenditure of the government is termed as fiscal deficit. It is an indication of the total borrowings that may be needed by the government.
The government intends to bring the fiscal deficit below 4.5 per cent of GDP by the financial year 2025-26.
The government proposed to increase capital expenditure outlay by 11.1 per cent to Rs 11.11 lakh crore in 2024-25.
"It was an interim budget, but an interim budget just before the election. Many people expected this to have populist measures in it. I think the government has been wonderfully responsible in not doing anything populist in containing both the revenue and the fiscal deficit and continuing the glide path that they had announced in the previous budgets. It also appears to be a budget coming from a sense of confidence that they are going to continue this spending over the coming years. So big focus on infrastructure, especially in the areas of railways, big focus on agriculture and farmers, women and youth, and also an encouragement to private enterprises to do more research and innovation, especially at the stage of startups. I also like the fact that they are encouraging state governments to take interest-free loans for specific areas of development, focusing on clean energy, focusing on civic infrastructure," added Sunil Kant Munjal.
The Chairman of Hero Entreprise also applauded the focus on new technologies like space technology and deep technology, crucial for building a robust future economy.
Munjal stressed the need for sustained high growth above 8% to address India's diverse population and improve living standards.
The Indian economy is projected to grow close to 7 percent in the financial year 2024-25 which starts this April, said the Ministry of Finance in a review report.
He commended the government's ambition to add another "Europe" to the economy within five years acknowledging the immense opportunities it presents for job creation and entrepreneurship, as the government of India has set a target of becoming a 7 trillion dollar economy by 2030,
Munjal emphasised the importance of both the government and private sector working in tandem for high growth. He called for supporting rural India, women, farmers, and the manufacturing and services sectors to ensure inclusive growth.
Recognizing global economic turmoil, Munjal highlighted India's resilience and improving bond ratings. He stressed the need for sustainability as a core principle in economic growth, including skilling the workforce to enhance productivity and consumption.
"We are going to add not just another India; we're going to add another complete Europe to our economy. We are going to more than double the economy in the next five to six years. So the headroom for growth that this will create and the consumption that this will create, thereby leading to more production, is also an immense opportunity for India to create a high number of jobs because it is important for us and the high number of entrepreneurs who will come in and provide this opportunity. We need to ensure that the focus is not only on government infrastructure spending but also on bringing in entrepreneurship, investment and growth from the private sector. Both of these engines have to fire in parallel for India to be a high-growth economy," said Sunil Kant Munjal.
Overall, Munjal expressed optimism about India's future, attributing it to responsible budgeting, targeted investments, and a focus on high growth with inclusivity and sustainability.
" I think the ability to allow us to grow and, at the same time, figure out a way to lower the cost of funding was critical. And this has been done while the entire world has been in turbulence. India has managed to remain like an ocean of calm. And with this, I feel we have given more continuity and consistency to this growth. I do hope that, in the future, we will be able to increase our growth. We need to have consistently high growth over the next 15 to 25 years. So our aim has got to be to raise this above 8%. And many of the things that are being put in place are building blocks for this in the future," Sunil Kant Munjal concluded.