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Budget 2013: A tightrope for Chidmabaram
As always, there is no dearth of adjectives being used by people and experts to describe the Union Budget 2013 presented by Union Finance Minister P Chidambaram. While economic liberals were hoping that government would opt for clearing the tailback of reforms more vigorously, some were hoping for the introduction of a populist Budget in view of the upcoming polls in 2014.
Though the Union Budget 2013 is encouraging for the SME sector, it is not aggressive enough. In the context of IT industry a lot more remains to be desired.
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R. Narayan
Founder & CEO
Power2sme.
While the Union Budget 2013 is encouraging for the SME industry, it is not aggressive enough. The good part is that the Indian government has reiterated its support to SMEs by announcing special plans that would facilitate the growth of the SME community.
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Guruswamy Ganesh
VP and Country Manager
Freescale Semiconductor India Pvt. Ltd.
This year's budget is an extremely moderate with no major shifts in the earlier stance. In realistic terms the budget looks more like a formality with not much initiative on providing big boost to the industry that was expected by the industry leaders.
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Debasis Chatterji
CEO
Netxcell Limited (Telecom Sector)
I feel that the budget is on the expected line and there is no surprise. On macroeconomic front Finance Minister has proposed the reduction of fiscal deficit to 4.8% which will be big challenge keeping in mind the non-plan expenditure of INR 11.1 trillion.
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Ramesh Loganathan
Vice President Products and Center Head Progress Software (IT Sector)
In my view this budget is more of sustainable medium-term substance rather than short-term considerations' driven. I am particularly impressed with the thought that has gone into helping foster a Start -Up ecosystem.
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Suman Reddy
Vice President and Managing Director
Pegasystems (for the IT Sector)
The overall budget was an attempt to increase investments both domestic and foreign and also increase the revenue by raising the tax implications. Though the finance minister acknowledged the challenges in bringing back the economic growth to 8%, but there were no specific policies and decisions announced which could allow us to grow at that rate.
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Pradeep Nair
MD
India and SAARC Autodesk
"The budget was austere in character and as expected stressed on fiscal prudence. What should please us in corporate India is the fact that the FM has laid a lot of importance on two specific areas which are imperative to boost growth- namely infrastructure development and Medium and Small enterprises."
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Partha Iyengar
Country Manager
Gartner Research, India
The big overarching focus on growth by the FM is the fundamental 'feel good' factor in this budget. Given the fact that one can argue that a lot of the weakness in the Indian economy is what I call a sentimental recession, his strong statement that there is no grounds for ‘doom and gloom’ heading into the new year.
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Rajat Jain
MD
Xerox India.
The government ha
s focused on enabling faster, sustainable and more inclusive growth as well introduced some key reforms for promoting overall economic development. …Overall, there is the much needed focus on infrastructure growth. The stress on education continues unabated, with the Rs 65000 crore allocation, and the continued focus on inclusive growth is heartening.
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Siddharth Nambiar
Co Founder and Managing Director
OfficeYes.com.
We are pleased to see an encouragement to MSME by way of the extension of benefits for 3 years for those companies that cross the threshold. This is a core customer constituency for our B2B office supplies e-commerce business and their growth will ensure higher growth for us.
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PVG Menon
President
India Electronics and Semiconductor Association (IESA)
"The India Electronics and Semiconductor Association (IESA) welcome the budget for its boost to the Indian Electronics and semiconductor industry. We believe the steps outlined for this sector by the Hon’ble Finance Minister will help to boost this sector by attracting investments, promoting entrepreneurship and domestic manufacturing,
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Deepak Sahu
Cheif Editor
VARINDIA
Given the tightrope Finance Minster Mr Chidambaram has to walk, he has done some commendable work. Measures such as creation of a standing council for the financial sector to advise on costs of doing business in India, along with the announcement of 15% tax allowance for investments over Rs 100 crore are step in the right direction The intent shown by the finance minster to expedite the GST bill merits my attention.
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Harsh Chitale
CEO and whole time Director
HCL Infosystems
Budget 2013 is about stability, positivity and I believe is a better budget then last year. This budget has stressed on some vital areas such as youth, education and skill development. Infusion of funds in the education sector without change in education cess, certainly is a step towards the nation's development.
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Navaneet Mishra
VP - Globalisation Services
SAP Labs India
The promise and intent shown by the honorable Finance Minister to fast track the GST bill and constitutional amendment is highly welcome.
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Jaswinder S Ahuja
Corporate Vice President and MD
Cadence Design Systems
We commend Union Finance Minister Chidambaram for making key decisions about critical areas like infrastructure, agriculture and education that will aid in the overall growth of the economy and benefit the common man.
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Sunil Khanna
President & MD
Emerson Network Power India
The commitment to bring about constitutional reforms in GST is a positive sign. The Finance Minister's initiative to set apart Rs. 9,000 crore towards GST compensation will encourage the states to get on board with GST and hasten reforms. Another welcome aspect is no change in the normal rate of excise duty coupled with revival of investment in manufacturing sector which has been reeling under inflationary pressures.
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Sanjay Deshmukh
Area Vice President - India Subcontinent
Citrix
The budget indicates that there is a pressing need for the public sector banks to be compliant with BASEL3 norms which underscores the need for better data management that can be realised through technologies such as virtualization and cloud services. Additionally, incentivising the semiconductor wafer fab manufacturing facilities along with provisioning zero customs duty for plant and machinery is a move in the right direction.
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Sudhindra Holla
Country Manager
Axis Communications India
The 2013-14 budget is optimistic for us, as we see growing potential for the surveillance industry and gradual adoption of technology to secure the society. In my view, the Government’s priority to allocate infra debt funds and create a regulatory authority for the roads sector would surge investments in developing the infrastructure of the country. This includes deployment of surveillance cameras for the safety and security of our fellow citizens. The Government's special attention to woman’s safety and contribu
tion towards the Nirbhaya fund will reinforce a sense of security in all our hearts.
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Suresh C Senapaty
Executive Director & Chief Finance Officer
Wipro
The budget delivers on the promise of fiscal prudence, continues to drive progress on reforms and chalks out initiatives like investment allowance to ensure growth is not ignored.
"At the outset I commend and support the FMs vision of making India a stronger global economic superpower in the medium term. Measures such as creation of a standing council for the financial sector to advise on costs of doing business in India, alongwith the announcement of 15% tax allowance for investments over Rs 100 cr , demonstrate the intent. And I am hopeful of more strides in this direction".- Anil Valluri - President, India & SAARC Operations, NetApp Marketing & Services Pvt. Ltd.
"Though the Government has announced the National Manufacturing Policy that aims to increase the share of manufacturing in GDP to 25% within a decade, the budget has failed to reverse the inverted tax structure which has been impacting the industry for years now, making India a predominantly import dependent country".- J V Ramamurthy, President, MAIT.
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Amar Babu
Vice-President
MAIT
"The key positive aspect was that the Government has aimed to enhance the ESDM industry by providing appropriate incentives for semiconductor industry, including zero customs duty on plants and machineries for setting up wafer fabs units in India, but it does fail to correct the inverted tax structure anomaly. "
"It's a forward-looking Budget with specific intent to address the twin challenges of fiscal deficit and improving the investment climate.In the context of IT though it has been very disappointing." - S. Rajendran, Chief Marketing Officer, Acer India.
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Jagdish Mahapatra
Managing Director
McAfee India & SAARC
"Overall, the Union Budget for 2013-2014 is a realistic one hinged on growth and development oriented expenditure. The focus on technology infusion in agriculture and provisions regarding MSMEs will spur the growth of the economy in the right direction."
This year's budget is for the masses yet a responsible one emphasizing on the fundamental premise of growth. We welcome the Government’s focus on fiscal stimulus, growth imperatives, important areas of social development, education with an emphasis on skills building for the youth, attracting FDI and incentivizing the MSME industries all of which are imperative for the country' transformation-Rajesh Janey, President, EMC India & SAARC
"The benefits announced for key sectors like infrastructure, agriculture and education are bound to positively impact the economy. This year’s budget initiatives focusing on women and youth also resonate well. The 15% investment allowance on manufacturing investment should give a fillip to domestic manufacturing. However, in overall terms, we do not see the Budget reviving the consumer sentiments in the absence of any specific incentives to boost consumer sentiment itself" - Asim Warsi, VP -Samsung Mobile
