Union Budget focuses on poor farmers will help in fulfilling 'Modi's guarantees' CM Sai

Raipur, Feb 1 (PTI) Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Vishnu Deo Sai on Thursday hailed the interim Union Budget for 2024-25, saying it focuses on empowerment of the poor, women, youths and farmers, and will help in realising the goal of making India a developed nation by 2047.
He said the interim budget or vote on account, presented by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in the Lok Sabha, will prove to be a milestone in fulfilling Prime Minister Narendra Modi's guarantees given to the people of the country.
Sai, in a statement here, said the budget focuses on empowerment of the poor, women, youth and farmers.
Prime Minister Modi has called for making India a developed country by 2047 and this budget will prove to be a milestone in realising this goal, said the BJP leader, who took over as chief minister in December last year.
"People have seen that the central government has paved the way for an all-round development of the country. In the last 10 years, success has been achieved in lifting 25 crore people out of multidimensional poverty. Also, 1.40 crore youths have been given training in employment-oriented works," said Sai.
Since 2014, when the BJP came to power at the Centre with full parliamentary majority, the economic condition of people has improved vastly, said the CM.
"The economic condition of people has improved as a result of which the average income of Indians has increased by 50 per cent in these years", he said.
The budget has proposed special initiatives for tribes and will promote inclusive development and provide more and more employment opportunities to youths, averred the CM.
It will further accelerate infrastructure development in the country, help in achieving goals of social justice, increase income levels of villagers and ensure development of all, he said.
The Centre has set a target of doubling the number of airports in the next 10 years. Apart from Raipur in Chhattisgarh, airports are also functional in Jagdalpur and Bilaspur, Sai said.
Airports at other places in the state, too, will soon become operational, he maintained.
Finance Minister Sitharaman announced a Rs 11.11 lakh crore spending on infrastructure and vowed to continue reforms as she resisted resorting to populist measures in the Modi government's last Budget before general elections, instead choosing to stay on the path of cutting deficit while bolstering measures for focus groups.
She proposed no changes in income tax rates for individuals and corporates, as well as import duty but offered amnesty for disputed income tax demands of the period prior to 2014-15 as a relief to small taxpayers.

In her close to an hour-long Budget speech in the Lok Sabha, she listed the government's achievements across sectors in the last 10 years and announced measures to boost tourism, housing and renewable energy.

(This story has not been edited by THE WEEK and is auto-generated from PTI)