Budget 2025 : What’s in It for You? Is This Budget Good for the Middle Class ?

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman presents her eighth consecutive Budget 2025 in Parliament. The government has made changes in the income tax slabs, providing relief to taxpayers. Now, individuals earning up to ₹12 lakh annually will not have to pay income tax. The Economic Survey 2024-25 estimates India’s GDP growth for FY 2026 to be between 6.3% and 6.8%.

Defence Budget 2025: ₹6.81 Lakh Crore Allocated for the Military
The Finance Minister has allocated ₹6.81 lakh crore for the defense sector, an increase from last year’s ₹6.2 lakh crore.

What Does the Budget Offer to the Common Man?
Union Budget 2025 Live Updates: All announcements can be found here.

• No income tax on annual earnings up to ₹12 lakh.
• The government is making significant plans for Artificial Intelligence, with an allocation of ₹500 crore.
  • In her budget speech, Finance Minister Sitharaman announced the creation of three Centres of Excellence (CoEs) for AI, with a dedicated budget of ₹500 crore.

Railway Budget: No New Announcements, Focus on Previous Commitments
While the railway sector received part of the budget, there were no major new announcements. For FY 2025-26, ₹2.52 lakh crore has been allocated to Indian Railways, the same amount as the previous year.

Impact of Budget 2025 on Gold and Silver Prices
The Finance Minister did not propose any changes to the import duties on gold and silver. Last year’s budget set the import duty on these metals at 6%.

Prime Minister’s Dhanshree Yojana: 100 Agricultural Districts to Be Included, Potential Aid for 1.7 Crore Farmers

What’s in Store for Farmers?

1. Launch of PM Dhanshree Yojana.
2. Mission mode efforts to increase pulse production.
3. The government will purchase toor, urad, and masoor pulses at MSP for the next four years.
4. Bihar’s farmers will greatly benefit from the creation of a Makhana Board.
5. Announcement of an increased loan limit on Kisan Credit Cards.
6. Three closed urea plants will be reopened.

Key Initiatives:

• Launch of a 6-year ‘Pulse Self-Reliance Mission,’ with a focus on toor, urad, and masoor pulses.
• Farmers can now access loans up to ₹5 lakh through Kisan Credit Cards.
• A new program will be introduced in collaboration with states for vegetable and fruit production.
• Loan guarantee coverage for start-ups will increase from ₹10 crore to ₹20 crore, and MSMEs running successfully will be able to secure loans up to ₹20 crore.
• New credit cards for micro-enterprises with a ₹5 lakh limit will be introduced.

Women’s Role in Economic Growth:

• 70% of the economic activities in a developed India will involve women.

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