We expect that this budget will simplify the tax norms, increase spending on social infrastructure and provide steps to boost domestic spending. We hope that budget will strengthen ‘ease of doing business’ and support incentives for ‘Make in India’ and other schemes announced by the government so that policy continuity remains which can be actioned by corporates for their mid-term and long-term planning.
Rajeev Sharma, Head – Corporate Services & Strategic Planning, Mitsubishi Electric India
Currently, India has had the lowest GDP rate in the last 11 years and there are high expectations from the Union Budget 2020. I firmly believe that the budget should be focused more towards catering to the intricate needs of various sectors like manufacturing, construction, consumer durables etc. Although, the government has already unveiled plans to stimulate economic growth and spur investment, further clarification is awaited from the upcoming budget. For a market like India, the government must bring in preferences with schemes, especially for the companies that are rapidly working towards strengthening
the roots of ‘Make in India’.
Vivek Sharma, Managing Director, Panasonic Life Solutions
We hope that the government will work on stricter enforcement of compliance regulations and safety norms against illegal lighting products that put customer safety to risk. Furthermore, reducing the GST rates for LED lighting products will enable a wider penetration of LED products, especially in the rural areas, which in turn will also help reduce the electricity consumption for our country.
Sumit Padmakar Joshi, Vice Chairman and Managing Director, Signify Innovations India.
We believe the government should continue to focus on ‘Make in India’ in the forthcoming budget and provide further incentives for investment in manufacturing units. Further, GST rationalisation for automotive products can provide great support to OEMs who have been fighting the continued automobile slowdown, while supporting the transition from BS4 to BS6.
J.K. Gupta, Chief Financial Officer, Tata Technologies Ltd
There are no incentives, benefits and support for the existing MSMEs in the manufacturing sector. From the budget, we expect that the government should create a business-friendly environment by giving tax credits, free land, worker training, low interest loans, infrastructure improvements and help fast tracking licensing and permitting. The government should also support in terms of sponsoring our sector’s exposure to the international markets. The government’s initiative to promote ‘Make in India’ can only be possible when the government starts funding which will help us as a sector to represent Indian manufacturers.
Amitansu Sathpaty, Managing Director, Best Power Equipments
Sale of crude oil and natural gas is outside GST regime but procurement of goods and services for its production are subject to GST regime. Thus, the tax credit of GST paid on inputs are not allowed against the output VAT making the industry burdened with huge indirect tax. This has resulted in a significant increase in the exploration and development costs. We would recommend to bring in petroleum and petroleum products within the purview of GST at the earliest to ensure smooth flow of credit and avoid any stranded taxes for the competitiveness of this critical sector. At the least gas should be brought under GST.
Vilas S Tawde, Managing Director and CEO, Essar Oil & Gas Exploration and Production Ltd
While the government has made major policy and regulatory interventions in order to promote solar power development, what is expected in this Budget is the stability of policies. The various regulatory uncertainties that are impacting investor confidence need to be addressed urgently. In addition, we expect the government to ensure better synchronisation between the DISCOMs and solar companies to ensure a win-win situation for all stakeholders.
Bharat Bhut, Director, Goldi Solar
The industry witnessed newsworthy developments in terms of installation of capacity, but the renewable energy sector grew at a much-reduced pace last year. Slowing economy, high taxation, low tariffs, coupled with investors sentiments has contributed to slower growth. In the upcoming budget, we are expecting the government to address the cross-subsidy and transmission charges as these hinder the development making renewable energy more expensive. Not only this for the overall development of renewable energy infrastructure, the government should also provide exemptions to the Indian cement sector as they play a crucial role in boosting the renewable sector.
Yogesh Mudras, MD, Informa Markets in India
We would expect lowering the GST on batteries which are used in electronic vehicles. Though GST Counsel has reduced the GST on EVs from 18 per cent to 5 per cent, they did not reduce the GST on batteries fitted at factory from 12 per cent. This needs to be lowered further as batteries form major portion in any EV. This change will make affordable EVs.
Udaya Bhaskar Rao Abburu, CEO & Managing Director, iRAM Technologies
We expect the government to revise full import duty on manufactured goods supplied to the domestic market from SEZ units. Duty or tariffs levied on the “duty forgone principal” would make manufacturing units suppling the DTA competitive, boosting investment and job creation. Also, single window clearances will pave way for the SEZs to ride the new growth wave in the country. We expect the government to let SEZs harness technology and low-cost services to provide efficient and superior-value services, become hubs for global businesses and boost exports in the coming years.
Sunil Rallan, CMD, J Matadee Free Trade Zone Pvt Ltd
