Budget: From freight subsidy to social security, Punjab MSMEs have a long wish list

Vipin Suree,
Founder and MD, Space Creattors
Gurugram

For an industry that contributes 7–8% to the country’s GDP and begets employment only second to agriculture, real estate is a relatively less appreciated and recognized industry. Our sector had a staggering growth rate in 2023, wherein the key property markets indexed an annual growth of 5%, despite contentions like record high interest rates and a surge in listing prices. We are bullish and expect to see the upswing in demand continue throughout 2024, but there is an expectation of some tangible support from the Finance Ministry. The government must provide momentum and succor to further stimulate the buying. Further, through the new budget, the government has to undertake cogent steps to not just boost demand but also address regulatory obstacles. A single window clearance, tax reliefs, and GST rationalization are some of the unequivocal measures that need to be initiated apart from granting real estate the industry status it has long deserved.

We need social security

Badish Jindal
National Convenor All Industries and Trade Federation (AITF)

No doubt, it will be an election budget, but we expect social security for entrepreneurs. Presently there is no social security for entrepreneurs. Even after paying huge direct taxes and GST, there is no pension or other
benefits given to entrepreneurs. More than 1 crore MSMEs were hit by the impact of COVID, many of the MSMEs were forced to close down their works, but the government didn’t compensate for such MSMEs. In addition to this,
petrol, diesel, and electricity should be brought under GST. Presently, in Punjab, consumers are paying more than 20% taxes on electricity and up to 60% taxes on petrol and diesel. These are the basic raw materials of the industry and should be brought under the preview of GST. AITF strongly advocates the ‘One Nation One Tax’ slogan. The slogan of the GST is one nation, one tax, but there are multiple slabs of GST on all products. Further, the income tax exemption limit should be 10 lakh.

Give us freight subsidy

Upkar Singh
President of Chamber of Industrial and Commercial Undertakings (CICU)

We hope FM will try to please many in this election budget. However, on behalf of CICU, I expect that the budget of MSMEs should be made three times so that these industries can take advantage of many schemes which remain unutilized due to a lack of funds. Income tax on new public limited firms these days is 15% of the total income, while in the case of partnership firms existing earlier, it is 30%. In India, the majority of the firms are in partnership. Freight subsidy is a must for the landlocked states like Punjab, and in its absence, we are getting out of competition.

Invest in awareness creation

Dilpreet Singh
Founder of Healthy Soil, Food and People,
Sangrur

I am an agripreneur, and I am expecting it to be a pure election budget with a vote bank in mind. However, being a progressive farmer as well as an agripreneur, I feel that MSMEs should be taxed on the basis of the turnover
of the company and not a 30% slab for one and all. The budget should focus on creating awareness, providing information and education about various schemes, a guide of how to be an exporter, and so on. There should be a
budget for such awareness programs rather than a fat budget for freebies. I am of the opinion that refining the farming sector is a must and structural changes are needed in this sector. A budget for the procurement of crops
other than wheat and paddy is a must to have a smooth transition towards diversification. The government must consider investing in infrastructure instead of freebies.