Union Budget 2021 is just three days away and experts and think tanks are ready with their wish lists and expectations from finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman. The focus is on the measures the finance minister could unveil to spur growth and boost revenues in these challenging times.
EY India in collaboration with CNBC-TV18 has compiled a list of possible measures the government could undertake.
According to the report, the government might continue its disinvestment push and curtail its expenditure like reducing subsidies in the upcoming Budget.
The EY analysis also outlines government’s priority areas that are likely to be reiterated in the Budget. These include Make In India, job creation, demand stimulation and higher spending on infrastructure.
On taxation, EY says the finance minister might consider higher taxation for profitable multinational enterprises, taxes for the digital economy and specific cesses to raise additional revenues.
Some of the taxation measures that the government could take to spur demand and investment include extending the concessional corporate tax rate of 15 percent to service sector like tourism which generates higher jobs. It could also remove the Rs 2 lakh cap on interest deduction on housing loans and provide LTA exemption on annual basis, rather than twice in 4 years.
To discuss more on corporate India’s Budget wish list, Shereen Bhan spoke to S Sridhar, Managing Director of Pfizer India; Dhanpal Jhaveri, Vice Chairman of Everstone Group and CEO of EverSource Capital; and Sudhir Kapadia, National Tax Leader at EY India.
Watch video for more.