NEW DELHI
:
Rakesh Bharti Mittal, vice-chairman of Bharti Enterprises Ltd, called for simplifying tax regimes for companies and individuals in the Union Budget 2024-25.
In an interaction with Mint, he also sought financial support for micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) and the healthcare sector in the budget to be presented to 23 July.
He said the industry would be looking for a meaningful road map to advance the country towards becoming a developed nation by 2047 in the budget. “India as a nation must continue the high-growth trajectory, which, I think, is extremely important when looking at our aspiration of Viksit Bharat. I expect finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman to ensure a meaningful road map is laid out to translate this vision into reality.”
Simplify tax regimes
Mittal acknowledged taxes are an important resource for the government for funding developmental projects but he sought a simplified tax structure that will contribute to the ease of doing business. “If that can be only further strengthened but implemented to the last mile. Infrastructure projects like roads, airports, and ports go through the entire country should be equally focused upon,” he said.
India has kept the effective tax rate for new manufacturing units at 17% to attract new investments into the country. Industries have demanded that this rate be continued for a few more years.
He said infrastructure development will be required to form a bedrock for investments in the semiconductor industry and for India to become part of the global supply chains.
India’s plans to scale up manufacturing are likely to be amongst the highlights of the budget 2024, according to several news reports. The country has been pushing to make space for itself in the global value chains to reduce its dependence on China.
Mittal also noted that the industry and the government must come together to scale up manufacturing so that high-quality product development can take place at scale, making products and services affordable. This, he said, will make India competitive in global markets. “Case in point is telecom, where we have the lowest tariffs in the world. That is something we can attain, and we don’t have a deficit of talent.”
Financial assistance for MSMEs
Terming MSMEs as the backbone of India’s economy, Mittal said an incentive model, rather than a subsidy model, should be considered to provide financial support to small businesses.
He also pushed for a healthcare safety net for individuals, especially those not covered under the government’s existing schemes.
Mittal highlighted the need to skill students and re-skill the workforce to make them employable. Here, both central and state governments would have to jointly make contributions to beef up the skill development programmes.
He also called on the government to adopt best practices from the private sector in education and replicate them in primary or secondary school systems.
Bharti Airtel Foundation, the philanthropic arm of Bharti Enterprises, launched a merit-cum-means scholarship programme on Tuesday. The programme will begin with 250 students a year and will gradually reach up to 4,000 students. The scholarship programme is expected to have an annual outlay of ₹100 crore to support students on a rolling basis.