Here are the Key Budget Highlights:

  1. Capital expenditure to be stepped up by 35.4%. 

The outlay for capital expenditure is to be upped from Rs 4.54 lakh crore earlier to Rs 7.50 lakh crore in 2022-23. 

  1. PM Gatishakti program emphasized. 

7 engines of growth (roads, railways, airports, ports, mass transport, waterways, logistics infrastructure). 

The National Highways Network will be expanded by 25,000 km in FY23.

Rs 20,000 crore will be mobilized through innovative ways of financing to complement the public resources.

Productivity-linked incentive schemes in 14 sectors have received an excellent response; received investment intentions worth Rs 30 lakh crore.

  1. Emergency Credit Line Guarantee Scheme (ECLGS) Scheme for MSMEs extended to March 2023 and expanded.

Added cover of Rs 50,000 crore. The total cover is now at Rs 5 lakh crore.

  1. SEZ Act to be replaced with new legislation. 

It will cover all large existing and new industrial enclaves to enhance the competitiveness of exports. 

  1. Crypto Tax Provision.

Any income from the transfer of any virtual digital asset is to be taxed at 30%. No deduction on any expenditure or allowance other than the cost of acquisition. TDS at 1% above a certain monetary threshold.

  1. Lower tax on new manufacturing units extended. 

15% lower tax rate for manufacturing units extended for one more year till March 2024. 

  1. Post Office banking boost. 

100% of India’s 1.5 lakh post offices will be on-boarded on the core banking system in 2022.

  1. Digital Rupee. 

India to introduce digital rupee issued by RBI in FY23. Proposed to introduce Digital Rupee by RBI using blockchain technology, starting 2022-23.

  1. Schemes on Low Income Housing + Tap Water In Homes sustained.

Current coverage of Har Ghar Nal Se Jal is 8.7 crore of which 5.5 crore households were provided tap water in the last two years itself. Allocation of Rs 60,000 crore has been made to this scheme in 2022-23. 

In 2022-23, 80 lakh houses will be completed for identified beneficiaries of PM Awas Yojana; 60,000 houses will be identified as beneficiaries for PM Awas Yojana in rural & urban areas.

A high-level committee for urban planners and economists to be formed for recommendations on urban capacity building, planning implementation, and governance.

Housing projects allotted Rs 48,000 cr for FY23 under the PM Housing scheme. Allotted Rs 48,000 cr for FY23 under PM Housing scheme.

  1. Atmanirbhar Defense Manufacturing. 

68% of the defense procurement budget is earmarked for domestic private industry. 

Defense R&D to be opened for startups, institutes, and academic outlets, 25% of R&D budget allotted towards this.

Private industry will be encouraged to take up the design and development of military platforms and equipment in collaboration with DRDO and other organizations through the SPV model.

  1. Railways

400 new generation Vande Bharat trains to be manufactured in next 3 years.

2,000 km of the rail network to be brought under indigenous technology KAWACH for safety and capacity augmentation. 

  1. Travel

The E-passport will be rolled out in 2022-23 for convenience in overseas travel. An E-passport with an embedded chip will be rolled out.

  1. Telecom

Spectrum auction will be conducted in 2022 for the rollout of 5G

Scheme for design-led manufacturing to be launched for 5G ecosystem as part of PLI scheme to enable affordable broadband and mobile communication in rural and remote areas.

Contracts for laying optical fiber in villages to be awarded under BharatNet project under PPP in 2022-23.

Data center and energy storage system to be given infrastructure status; move to provide easy financing. 

  1. Healthcare

An open platform for the national digital health ecosystem will be rolled out.

It will consist of digital registries of health providers and health facilities, unique health identity, and universal access to health facilities.

95 percent of 112 aspirational districts have made significant progress in health, infra.

For mental health counseling, a National Tele Mental Health Program will be launched

  1. Education

States to be encouraged to revise the syllabus of agricultural universities to meet needs of natural, zero-budget & organic farming, modern-day agriculture.

One class, one TV channel’ program of PM eVIDYA will be expanded from 12 to 200 TV channels.

This will enable all states to provide supplementary education in regional languages for classes 1 to 12.

Digital university to be set up to provide education; to be built on a hub and spoke model.

1-Class-1-TV Channel to be implemented to provide supplementary education to children to make up for loss of formal education due to Covid.

  1. Finance & Tax

Taxpayers can file updated ITR within two years of the relevant assessment year. This is a new provision that will ensure voluntary tax filing and reduce litigation. 

Long-term capital gains to be subject to surcharge only at 15% for all assets as against graded surcharge. Currently, this is available only for listed shares and units of mutual funds.