Missed Sitharaman Speech? Here Are The Biggest Budget Announcements For You

Budget Highlights 2024: FM Sitharaman announced significant changes to the income tax structure, offering relief to salaried individuals and pensioners while boosting the start-up ecosystem.

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman presented the seventh consecutive Union Budget today, marking the first budget of the newly formed Narendra Modi-led NDA government's third term. In her speech, FM Sitharaman announced significant changes to the income tax structure, providing relief to salaried individuals and pensioners while boosting the start-up ecosystem. 

Missed the Finance Minister's budget speech in Parliament today? ABPLIVE brings you the key highlights of Budget 2024:

Under the new tax regime, the standard deduction for salaried employees is proposed to be increased from ₹50,000 to ₹75,000. Similarly, the deduction on family pension for pensioners is proposed to be enhanced from ₹15,000 to ₹25,000. These changes will benefit about 4 crore salaried individuals and pensioners.

Revised Tax Structure Under New Regime

- ₹0- ₹3 lakh: Nil
- ₹3-7 lakh: 5%
- ₹7-10 lakh: 10%
- ₹10-12 lakh: 15%
- ₹12-15 lakh: 20%
- Above ₹15 lakh: 30%

As a result of these changes, a salaried employee in the new tax regime stands to save up to ₹17,500 in income tax.

Gold And Silver To Become Cheaper

To enhance domestic value addition in gold and precious metal jewellery, customs duties on gold and silver have been reduced to 6% and on platinum to 6.4%. Previously, the effective rate of customs duty on these metals was 15%.

The Basic Custom Duty (BCD) on mobile phones, mobile printed circuit board assembly (PCBA), and mobile chargers will be reduced to 15%. BCD is a tax levied on all imported goods as a percentage of the final assessable value. This reduction in BCD will lead to a reduction in the price of mobile units.

To tackle unemployment, the government in its budget announced a new internship scheme offering opportunities for 1 crore youths in over 500 leading companies. The scheme promises:

- A monthly stipend of Rs 5,000
- A one-time assistance payment of Rs 6,000

Furthermore, the government has outlined a comprehensive plan to create job opportunities for approximately 4.1 crore youth over the next five years, with a substantial budget allocation of Rs 2 lakh crore. This initiative aims to provide a significant boost to employment in the country.

To bolster the Indian start-up ecosystem, boost entrepreneurial spirit, and support innovation, the Angel Tax for all classes of investors has been abolished.

Support For Manufacturing & Services

To facilitate term loans to MSMEs for the purchase of machinery and equipment without collateral or third-party guarantee, a credit guarantee scheme will be introduced. This scheme will operate on pooling the credit risks of such MSMEs. A separately constituted self-financing guarantee fund will provide each applicant with a guarantee covering up to ₹100 crore.

The limit of Mudra loans will be enhanced to ₹20 lakh from the current ₹10 lakh for those entrepreneurs who have availed and successfully repaid previous loans under the 'Tarun' category.