In a significant push towards digitalisation, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman unveiled a series of measures aimed at boosting technology adoption as part of the Union Budget 2024-2025 presented in Parliament on Tuesday. Sitharaman highlighted the transformative role of technology over the past decade emphasising its impact on productivity and economic equality. She credited public investment in digital infrastructure and private sector innovations for enhancing access to market resources, education, health services and more.
Key announcements
Data and statistics: To enhance data governance and management, the finance minister announced that various sectoral databases including those from the Digital India mission will be leveraged with advanced technology tools.
Mobile phones and related parts: Reflecting the growth of the Indian mobile phone industry—marked by a three-fold increase in domestic production and a nearly 100-fold rise in exports over six years—the budget proposes a reduction in customs duty on mobile phones, mobile PCBA (Printed Circuit Board Assembly) and mobile chargers to 15 per cent.
Electronics: To boost value addition in the domestic electronics sector, the government plans to eliminate customs duty, under specific conditions on oxygen-free copper used in resistor manufacture and exempt certain parts required for connectors.
Telecommunication equipment: In a bid to promote domestic manufacturing, the Union finance minister proposed raising the customs duty on PCBA for specified telecom equipment from 10 to 15 per cent.
Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) applications: The budget outlines the development of DPI applications across various sectors—including credit, e-commerce, education, health, law and justice, logistics, MSME, services delivery and urban governance—to foster productivity, business opportunities, and innovation.
Space economy: Committing to expand the space economy five-fold over the next decade, the finance minister announced the creation of a Rs1,000 crore venture capital fund to support this initiative.
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