Interim Budget Allocates Rs 1 Lakh Cr For Indian Youth, Introduces DeepTech Scheme For Defense
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Thursday unveiled the interim budget for the fiscal year 2024-25, putting the spotlight on a massive allocation of Rs 1 lakh crore corpus for the youth of the country and a new Deep Tech focused scheme.
During her address in the parliament, Minister Sitharaman said, "A corpus of Rs 1 lakh crore will be established with a 50-year interest-free loan. The corpus will provide long-term financing or refinancing with long tenors and low or nil interest rates."
This financial commitment will look to encourage the private sector to significantly scale up research and innovation, particularly in sunrise domains.
“The budget’s focus on research and innovation—with a corpus of Rs 1 lakh crore with a 50-year interest free loan—is a significant move given India’s aspirations of being a USD 5–7 trillion economy by 2030. Further, the emphasis on green energy, announcement of rooftop solarisation and the fostering of the EV ecosystem underline the government’s priority on sustainability,” said Neeraj Bansal, co-Head & COO - India Global, KPMG in India.
Crucially, the Finance Minister announced a pioneering scheme dedicated to strengthening Deep Tech technologies for defense purposes. "A new scheme will be launched for strengthening deep tech technologies for defense purposes and expediting atmanirbharta," she said.
This move aligns with the government's vision of achieving self-reliance in defense capabilities through cutting-edge technologies.
