Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Tuesday presented the Budget for the financial year 2024-’25.

The Bharatiya Janata Party leader revealed the Budget for the third term of the National Democratic Alliance government in Parliament.

Here are the key announcements from Sitharaman’s interim Budget:

  • The Centre revised slabs for the new income tax regime. In the new tax regime, no tax will be levied on annual income up to Rs 3 lakh.  The tax for income from Rs 3 lakh to Rs 7 lakh is 5%, from Rs 7 to 10 lakh is 10% and from Rs 10 to 12 lakh is 15%. Income between Rs 12 and 15 lakh will be taxed at 20%, while that over Rs 15 lakh will be taxed at 30%. Sitharaman also announced that the standard deduction limit for salaried individuals under the new tax regime would be increased to Rs 75,000 from Rs 50,000. The deduction for family pension for pensioners was hiked to Rs 25,000 from Rs 15,000. She claimed that as a result of the changes, a salaried employee would be able to save up to Rs 17,500 in income taxes.
  • The Centre announced financial support and several infrastructure projects for Andhra Pradesh and Bihar. The BJP formed the government at the Centre with the help of Bihar’s ruling Janata Dal (United) and Andhra Pradesh’s Telugu Desam Party, among other members of its National Democratic Alliance. The Centre announced social and infrastructure funds for Andhra Pradesh, with a backward region grant for three districts. It has also allocated Rs 15,000 crore financial assistance for capital city Amaravati’s development. For Bihar, Sitharaman announced support for the development of the Patna-Purnea expressway, Buxar-Bhagalpur highway, improved road connectivity in Bodhgaya-Rajgir-Vaishali-Darbhanga and an additional two-lane bridge over river Ganga in Buxar at the cost of Rs 26,000 crore.
  • The minister said that India’s fiscal deficit target has been cut to 4.9% of the gross domestic product for the financial year 2024-’25 from 5.1% estimated in the interim Budget in February. A fiscal deficit arises when the government’s expenditure is more than the revenue it generates in a given financial year. The gross borrowings are estimated to be Rs 14.01 lakh crore and the net market borrowings through dated securities are expected to be Rs 11.63 lakh crore, Sitharaman said in her Union Budget speech on Tuesday.
  • The Centre will provide financial support for loans up to Rs 10 lakh for higher education in domestic institutions, Sitharaman said. She also announced that the government will provide 12-month internship opportunities to 1 crore young persons in top 500 companies for a five year period. The government will also provide one-month wage to all persons newly entering the workforce in all formal sectors. The direct benefit transfer of one-month salary in three instalments to first-time employees will be up to Rs 15,000. The eligibility limit will be a salary of Rs 1 lakh per month.
  • For agriculture and allied sectors, the Centre announced an allocation of Rs 1.52 lakh crore. “Our government will undertake a comprehensive review of the agriculture research setup to bring the focus on raising productivity and developing climate resilient varieties,” the finance minister said. She added that new 109 high-yielding and climate-resilient varieties of 32 field and horticulture crops will be released for cultivation by farmers.
  • The latest Budget has also reduced customs duty rates on a number of products including mobile phones, mobile printed circuit board assembly chargers. The Centre has fully exempted three cancer treatment drugs from customs duty. Minerals such as lithium, copper, cobalt and rare earth critical for sectors like nuclear energy, renewable energy, space, defence, telecommunications, and high-tech electronics will also be exempt from customs duty.