Union budget 2023 – reactions from industry

Will take India on the trajectory of a technology-driven and knowledge-based economy

“Government policy formulation is a consultative process and the successive budgets including 2023 is a strong reflection of this process, aimed at promoting a virtuous cycle of growth and employment. Significant and sustained push on Infrastructure spend, Railways, Green Technologies and Defence is a welcome measure. Overall direction to take India on the trajectory of a technology-driven and knowledge-based economy coupled with productive capital investments will have long-standing benefits in driving inclusive financial growth and enhancing per-capita income levels.” – Baba Kalyani, Chairman and Managing Director, Bharat Forge Ltd.

“This Union Budget, we applaud the Government’s focus on the growth of green infrastructure that supports factors like green building, green energy, and green equipment. These sustainable practices are a step in the right direction to achieve the goal of net zero carbon emission by 2070. At RR Kabel, we support the Government in building a sustainable and safe ecosystem for the future generation.

Additionally, the budget aims to achieve efficient urban infrastructure with programs like Smart Cities Mission for 100 cities and the Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT) for 500 urban bodies. The budget also places a lot of emphasis on developing the nation’s infrastructure by giving impetus to Tier 2 and 3 cities for developing urban infrastructure.

As a company committed to safety through quality, we hoped the Government would lay emphasis on the need to build safe infrastructure through the use of technologically advanced premium quality products. As we step into a new financial year, we are determined to support the government’s objective of a stronger economy that is built on robust infrastructure.” – Shreegopal Kabra, MD & Group President, RR Kabel

Inclusive, growth-oriented Budget 

“The inclusive, growth-oriented Budget builds on the foundation of previous years and is consistent with the Government’s efforts to maintain macro-economic stability while focusing on growth. The increase in investments in capital infrastructure, including ‘Green Growth’, sustainable cities and railways & transport infrastructure will give the necessary boost to the domestic economy. I also welcome the enhanced support for MSMEs, exports, domestic manufacturing and value-add, technology and youth, which are all imperative to maintain India’s economic growth.” – Sunil Mathur, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Siemens Limited, India

“We welcome the Government’s commitment to upgrading infrastructure and embracing green energy, promoting an environmentally conscious lifestyle as part of the green growth initiative is a highly commendable move. We are looking forward to the increased adoption of innovations, which are perfectly aligned with this endeavour. Polycab is dedicated to promoting green and sustainable growth in India. We believe it is our responsibility to ensure that our operations and products have the least possible environmental impact. We are excited to work with the government to support the growth and expansion of India’s electrical industry.” – Mr. Inder Jaisinghani, Chairman and Managing Director, Polycab

Promises quality healthcare to all

“This year’s budget highlights the government’s continued push toward improving access to quality healthcare for all. We are particularly excited about the announcement to open 3 inter-disciplinary AI research and development centres to “Make AI in India and Make AI work for India.” AI in Healthcare has already shown immense promise across the globe in improving care. We have seen use cases across diagnostics where AI tools are bettering accuracy, speed and also enabling early diagnosis, mental health where AI chatbots can be used as the first line of treatment, etc. Given the potential to create large healthcare data sets in India used to train AI and the pool of highly qualified tech talent, this move by the government makes us more ready than ever to make AI in Healthcare a trillion-dollar opportunity.

Healthcare continues to be a space where professionals like doctors, nurses, etc. have unequal influence over any individual’s care journey. Additional investment in developing and upskilling healthcare personnel like nurses and technicians was one of our key expectations from the budget. We welcome the announcement to set up 157 new nursing colleges in the country, a move that will be pivotal not only to healthcare but also employment.” Namit Chugh, Investment Lead, W Health Ventures