The Indian Budget 2022 – My perspectives.

This is my first blog article this year and I could not find a better day (Vasant Panchami) and a topic that is trending currently in the Indian subcontinent.

Yes, it is, “The Union Budget 2022”.

This is my analysis and perspective, and my views may differ from the rest. 

I have attempted a different viewpoint than most economists and thought leaders.

I was invited as a panel guest by the Indo-Gulf Management association to share my thoughts on the Indian Budget 2022

Frankly speaking, the very concept of direct taxations like income tax, capital gain tax, etc are outdated especially in a country like India wherein the only a small percentage of the population pays the taxes. (source financial express).

The tax reforms should not burden the small percentage of taxpayers, rather the focus should be on GST kind of taxation which is consumption-based i.e. you pay for the services or products consumed or utilized. (Majority population pays for GST)

Learn about Retail trends in 2022, click here

Budget 2022 – Key points

The Budget 2022-23 focus has been on ‘growth’ and ‘CAPEX spending’ across sectors.

It is futuristic looking budget.

A good push to infrastructure by significantly increased capital expenditure, with a renewed focus on supply chain and logistics, and domestic manufacturing

Railways have been the core of India’s infrastructure development and its budget outlay justifies the same.

Linking Railways with the concept of “One station- One product” will boost the local product consumption and logistics. 

The locally manufactured products can now easily be transported through nook & corners of the country with ease.

I consider this step revolutionary rather than dolling out subsidies and tax payer’s money in terms of Guaranteed MSP which was actually not solving the farmer’s issues. 

By providing the market to the farmers and linking them to the logistical strength of Railways will drive better returns for the farmers.

Actually, the focus of the budget has been in developing infrastructure and supply chain ecosystem for the “Made in India” products.

Budget 2022 from Retail Business Perspective:

FMCG sector growth depends upon rural growth  & its consumption.

The 1.5 lakh post offices into the core banking system is a positive particularly for rural India and a higher minimum support price (MSP) allocation will drive consumption of fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) products in the hinterland.

Bringing the rural population into the banking ecosystem will ensure that any governmental subsidies will reach the needy people through their banking accounts or post office accounts directly.

Supply chain / logistics– Budget 2022

As a part of the ‘PM Gati Shakti’ initiative, a Unified Logistics Interface Platform designed for ‘Application Programming Interface’ will be set up. 

This is expected to provide for efficient movement of goods through different modes, reducing logistics cost and time, assisting just-in-time inventory management, and eliminating tedious documentation.

Learn about the business model of food delivery apps, click here

Digitisation measures

75 Digital Banking units in 75 districts of the country by Scheduled Commercial Banks are likely to provide a big push to the digital banking infrastructure of India.

The Most Resilient sector – Agriculture

The agriculture sector has grown 3.6% in 2021-22.

Sustainability initiatives – Budget 2022.

The Budget gave India’s renewable sector a big push.

 The electronic Vehicle manufacturing /charging business in focus.

A policy for battery swapping will aid in reducing the upfront ownership cost of EVs, thereby driving customer preference towards such vehicles. 

This policy is also expected to encourage the private sector to develop sustainable and innovative business models for ‘Battery or Energy as a Service. 

The main rationale behind Green energy is to reduce the burden of our foreign exchange outgo in terms of oil procurement.

 Hence encouraging greener transportation would mean that as a country we are less dependent on imported hydrocarbons.

To learn about Re-commerce, click here.

Key numbers – Budget 2022

• GDP growth rate projected for 2022-23 is approx. 8 to 8.5%.
• Industrial sector projected to grow at 11.8%.
• Exports to grow by 16.5%.

Housing/ Real estate

Job Uncertainty continues to make people wary of EMIs, with home loans registering a decline vs pre-pandemic levels.

But there was no relief pertaining to Interest waiver or extended period offered to taxpayers in this budget.

However, Affordable housing was clearly in focus, with the finance minister announcing the allocation of  ₹48,000 crores under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana. 

Startup Boost

Current provisions to qualify as an eligible start-up (extended by a year to 2023);  

• India has the third largest startup ecosystem in the world after US & China.
• New Delhi overtook Bangalore as start up capital.
• In 2021, India saw 44 unicorns which is a record.

Beneficial tax rate of 15 percent – Boost to manufacturing sector.

This will provide stability & certainty to the sector.

Customs duty reduced

Customs duty reduced on inputs required for the manufacture of consumer goods like mobiles, cameras, gems etc

Removal of customs exemption on certain items, and providing concessional duties on the raw material that go into the manufacturing of intermediate products will support the Government’s objective of ‘Make in India’ and ‘Atmanirbhar Bharat’.

Some sectors ignored.

Aviation

The airlines expected govt to suspend Minimum alternate tax for the aviation and airport sector for min two years. This is one sector that has taken the hit along with the tourism and Hospitality sector during the Pandemic.

Generating Jobs

The focus on the manufacturing sector will indirectly generate employment for the skilled population.

No relaxation to the existing tax slabs.

There is no change in current taxation slabs for the salaried employees however there is no additional tax burden either.

You can watch the full webinar here.

Summary:

Despite all challenges, the Budget presented by our finance minister is quite forward-looking. 

The rest will depend on its execution of governmental policies and plans.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Ritesh Mohan is a passionate retail professional with over 23 years in the Retail sector, handling some of the biggest brands in the beauty, fashion, and fragrances retail & FMCG sector.

He has been instrumental in the growth of some of the regional brands as well in the Middle East region.

Ritesh specializes in Retail management, Product development, and Brand Management, Retail Operations, Sales Management, and Franchising & Business Management.

He strongly believes in empowering business owners with his wisdom & experience of around two decades in the industry.

follow me on Instagram as @mohanritesh & on Youtube as @riteshmohan