Union Budget 2023 wish list: Industry

The Tech Panda asked industry experts their expectations from the Union Budget 2023.

The Union Budget 2023 is almost here, and expectations are rife from Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on 1^st of February 2023.

Last year’s Budget was praised to favour the agri sector focusing on infusing it with technology such as drones. As India proceeds towards becoming an Electric Vehicle nation, the battery swapping policy as an alternative to setting up charging stations in urban areas was welcomed.

In 2023, the global logistics ecosystem is staring at an exciting phase of ascendency. Recent predictions show that retail ecommerce sales worldwide will reach a mammoth US$6.3 trillion in 2023, compared to US$5.7 trillion in 2022. As a result, the logistics industry, especially the last mile, has become a critical aspect for businesses to focus on.

Similarly, considering the Indian economy has begun to recover from the fiscal repercussions of the COVID-19 pandemic outbreak, the manufacturing sector is expecting solid growth, which can further strengthen by providing fiscal incentives and specific schemes.

Other equally critical sectors like manufacturing, F&B, job market, all look forward to a sound Budget in 2023.

The Tech Panda asked industry experts their expectations from the Union Budget 2023.

LOGISTICS

Prasad Sreeram, Co-founder & CEO, COGOS

“As a leading city logistics player, we have high hopes from the budget 2023. There’s a need to bring all energies and fuels under the GST umbrella to reduce the variations across states and reduce the cost of fuel.

There’s a need to bring all energies and fuels under the GST umbrella to reduce the variations across states and reduce the cost of fuel

“Second, we need support in creating green technologies in the country, like Fuelcell technologies along with green hydrogen and EV. Third, we are looking at faster implementation of Unified Logistics Interface Platform (ULIP) as it would improve interoperability reducing cost and improve efficiency in the logistics sector, leading to a cleaner and more sustainable future for all”.

Rahul Raj, Co-founder, FloBiz

“The government may announce implementation of National Logistics Policy (NLP) in this budget, as introduced by PM Narendra Modi in September 2022. NLP has been framed with the objective to reduce the cost of logistics in India from current 14-15% of GDP to the global average at 8% of GDP.

The government may announce implementation of National Logistics Policy (NLP) in this budget, as introduced by PM Narendra Modi in September 2022

“NLP aims to mobilise digitisation and data-driven capabilities for streamlining cooperation and support within India’s logistic sector and improve ease in movement of goods. NLP 2022 lays out an extensive multi-stakeholder scheme for the growth of the entire logistics ecosystem to solve concerns of high cost and inefficiency. In 2025, it was predicted that this industry will reach 380 billion dollars with a 10-12% CAGR.”

Lalit Das, Founder, 3SC Solutions

“The Union Budget for 2023-24 will be announced next month at a geopolitical period of critical importance for India, particularly in light of the ongoing pandemic and the impending recession. Exports are one of the main factors contributing to India’s economic growth today, as the global market presents a host of opportunities for the nation’s comprehensive supply chain network.

To make India a part of the worldwide supply chain for products and services, the budget must create a favourable political climate that promotes importing raw materials rather than completed items, seeking new markets and increasing service exports

“To make India a part of the worldwide supply chain for products and services, the budget must create a favourable political climate that promotes importing raw materials rather than completed items, seeking new markets and increasing service exports.”

WOMEN’S WELLNESS

Sujata Pawar, Co-Founder & CEO, Avni

“While the Union Budget 2023 will primarily focus on promoting comprehensive holistic growth across the nation, but it would be great if women’s health and wellness, particularly menstrual hygiene, are kept on high priority. For India to spring up from its menstrual waste problem, we eagerly await policies from the government that fosters the marketing and sale of organic biodegradable menstrual products.

For India to spring up from its menstrual waste problem, we eagerly await policies from the government that fosters the marketing and sale of organic biodegradable menstrual products

“This small step has the potential to reduce the tons of commercial plastic sanitary napkins that end up creating mountains of landfills. Although the emphasis should be ‘Make in India’, lowering import taxes on raw materials could assist address the initial bottlenecks and motivate more female-led businesses to start contributing towards a greener India.

MANUFACTURING

Rajeev Sharma, Chief Strategy Officer, Mitsubishi Electric India Pvt. Ltd.

“Mitsubishi Electric India is looking forward to encourage infrastructural development and bring technological innovation through our products and solutions for the Indian market. I hope that Budget 2023 scales a path towards India’s growth story, especially in the infrastructure and technology sectors.

Considering that the Indian economy has begun to recover from the fiscal repercussions of the COVID-19 pandemic outbreak, the manufacturing sector is expected to experience solid growth, which can further strengthen by providing fiscal incentives and specific schemes in the upcoming union budget 2023-24

“The expectation for the upcoming union budget is to continue and provide the right policy and budgetary framework to ensure economic growth of the country and a budget design that can stand as per the GDP growth rate expectations.

“I strongly believe that Indian government will prioritize the policies that can benefit the infrastructure, manufacturing sector and promote renewable energy allowing the country to realize its potential on a global scale. Manufacturing investments must be encouraged among technology providers to bring self-reliant solutions in the country. Development of new-age manufacturing skills across the top and bottom of the pyramid must be enlightened which can be a game changer for further skill development. The overall expectation from the union budget is that it brings a steady growth for the present and future of the country.”

Gaurav Mathur, Director of Lexar Co. Limited

“We believe that manufacturing companies should be rewarded for developing new technologies and implementing environmentally friendly business practices in the budget for 2023. The budget for this year could have a positive impact on infrastructure; with tax reforms and ease of doing business at the forefront.

We believe that manufacturing companies should be rewarded for developing new technologies and implementing environmentally friendly business practices in the budget for 2023

“We anticipate that the upcoming budget will include measures to improve the entire system. Government should focus on improving the condition of the flash memory industry because everyone can see how rapidly the flash memory market has expanded over the past three to four years. The only field in which young India is also contributing is the obviously expanding flash memory market.”

WORKFORCE

Vivek Mani Tripathi, Vice President, Human Resources, Newgen Software

“The demand for tech talent throughout FY 2021-22 was high, leading to large recruitment teams, multiple offers for candidates, and high wage inflation. However, we witnessed a cooling down of the job market from the second quarter onwards as companies revisited their hiring needs due to high inflation, sluggish economic activity in Europe and the US, and the possibility of a recession. Due to the liquidity crunch, many Indian startups faced funding issues and had to let people go. 

The upcoming Union Budget must provide some relief from personal income tax, helping salaried employees. This will also help corporates provide moderate wage hikes

“With everything returning to normal, many companies have asked their employees to work from office in a hybrid mode. This has led to a better connection among employees and reduced employee churn. Also, The proportion of gig workers has been rising, boosted by the tech talent’s preference to work remotely. Companies are also comfortable having more gig workers as it enables flexibility. The proportion of gig workers will further increase in the future. The upcoming Union Budget must provide some relief from personal income tax, helping salaried employees. This will also help corporates provide moderate wage hikes.”

AGTECH

Aneesh Jain, Founder, Gram Unnati

“With millions of Indians depending on agriculture as the primary source of their livelihood, the sector has always been, especially in the last few years, a key focus of the Union Budget. This year too we expect the government to support interventions which will enable farmers to sustainably improve their incomes.

To support the integration of FPOs and agritech companies in the agricultural supply chains, credit guarantees for working capital lines could be explored. These will enable timely payments to farmers and efficient linkages with markets, especially by FPOs

“To enable this, farmers need to adopt new crops & technologies which have the potential to drastically improve yields and returns. Some incentives or schemes for setting up demonstrations will go a great distance in promoting new crop & technology adoption by farmers. These demonstrations should however be conducted in concentrated clusters at a village or gram panchayat level to enable sufficient production at one place otherwise market linkages might become a challenge.

“It might also be useful to incentivize use of modern and innovative crop nutrition solutions. Schemes in this direction will reduce farmer’s dependency on Urea and DAP. Lastly, to support the integration of FPOs and agritech companies in the agricultural supply chains, credit guarantees for working capital lines could be explored. These will enable timely payments to farmers and efficient linkages with markets, especially by FPOs.”

Navneet Ravikar, Chairman & MD, Leads Connect Services

“We expect the government to abolish the GST and mandi tax on agricultural produce brought from FPOs. Also, the universal crop insurance scheme should be launched with a 100% subsidy on premium for marginal farmers with landholding below 2 hectares. Crop insurance third-party loss assessors association should be formed for technology-based yield estimation and localized claims assessment for timely and equitable claim settlement under PMFBY.

We expect the government to abolish the GST and mandi tax on agricultural produce brought from FPOs

“The grants and subsidies under various schemes for drones should be extended to Agritech, Agrifintech, and private research organizations who are working in the field of agriculture. At last, the government should grant 50% subsidy for essaying, testing and certification on agricultural products, milk produce to certified food testing labs.”

F&B

Kushang, Co-founder & CEO, SupplyNote

“As a technology startup in the F&B industry, SupplyNote is keenly aware of the challenges facing the sector. From high taxes to complex liquor regulations and difficulties in obtaining permits and licenses, the industry is in dire need of a more streamlined and business-friendly environment. We hope that the Budget 2023 will address these issues by simplifying the tax bracket and easing regulations around liquor, permits and licenses.

As the F&B industry is one of the largest job creators in the country, we look forward to the government creating a positive environment for the sector

“Additionally, as the F&B industry is one of the largest job creators in the country, we look forward to the government creating a positive environment for the sector, including relaxation on taxes for startups and the positive induction of private companies in the government ecosystem. We also hope to see the impactful implementation of ONDC, as it will help to digitize and optimize the backend operations of food businesses and increase profitability.”

Harshit Mittal, Co-founder & CTO of SupplyNote

“In the eye of rising costs and reduced margins, we need a budget that supports interest-free loans, allows greater subsidies and reduces tax structure. Another is the non-availability of input tax credit (ITC) that impacts the P&Ls adversely.

In the eye of rising costs and reduced margins, we need a budget that supports interest-free loans, allows greater subsidies and reduces tax structure

“We hope the union budget 2023-24 will address these issues to accelerate the growth of the F&B sector.”