Union Budget Leather: To enhance the productivity, quality and competitiveness of India's footwear and leather sector, the government will implement a focused product scheme that is likely to reduce the prices of bags and footwear made from leather.
Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said the scheme will support design capacity, component manufacturing, and the machinery required for the production of non-leather quality footwear, besides the support for leather footwear and products.
The scheme is expected to facilitate employment for 22 lakh persons, generate turnover of four lakh crore and exports of over 1.1 lakh crore.
"I propose to fully exempt BCD on Wet Blue leather to facilitate imports for domestic value addition and employment. I also propose to exempt crust leather from 20% export duty to facilitate exports by small tanners," she added.
Measures for the Toy Sector
Building on the National Action Plan for Toys, we will implement a scheme to make India a global hub for toys. The scheme will focus on the development of clusters, skills, and a manufacturing ecosystem that will create high-quality, unique, innovative, and sustainable toys that will represent the 'Made in India' brand.
Sitharaman also announced a new scheme will be launched for 5 lakh women, Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes first-time entrepreneurs. This will provide term loans up to Rs 2 crore during the next five years. The scheme will incorporate lessons fromthe successful Stand-Up India scheme. Online capacity building for entrepreneurship and managerial skills will also be organised.