PM asks India Inc to step up investment 'so that country gets maximum benefit'

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday urged India Inc to increase investment and take advantage of the opportunities unveiled in the Budget 2023-24.

Addressing the 10th webinar on Budget — ‘Enhancing Efficiency of the Financial Services for Creating Growth Opportunities’ — Modi said the government has increased outlay on capital expenditure to Rs 10 lakh crore, the highest ever.

Call to pvt sector

In this backdrop, he said, “I would also call upon the private sector of the country to increase their investment just like the government so that the country gets maximum benefit from it.”

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“Today you have a government that is taking policy decisions with courage, clarity and confidence, you too will have to step up,” Modi said.

“India is being called the bright spot of the global economy,” the prime minister added.

The prime minister further said as opposed to the past, the tax burden has come down significantly in India due to GST, reduction in income tax and corporate tax.

Tax collection

This, he said, has resulted in better tax collection. In 2013-14, gross tax revenue was about Rs 11 lakh crore which rose to Rs 33 lakh crore in 2023-24, an increase of 200 per cent. The number of individual tax returns increased from 3.5 crore to 6.5 crore from 2013-14 to 2020-21.

“Paying tax is such a duty, which is directly related to nation building. The increase in the tax base is proof that people have faith in the government, and they believe that the tax paid is being spent for public good,” Modi said.

“Trust and expectations have replaced question marks in every discussion of Indian economy,” he said.

UPI India’s identity

He further said RuPay and UPI are not just a low-cost and highly secure technology, but it is our identity in the world. “There is immense scope for innovation and UPI should become a means of financial inclusion and empowerment for the whole world, we have to work for it,” he said.

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“The need of the hour is that the benefits of the strength in India’s banking system should reach maximum people,” he added.

Modi suggested that the financial institutions should also have maximum partnership with fintechs to increase their reach.

(With agency inputs)