The road to Viksit Bharat is driven by four engines; agriculture, MSMEs, investment and exports. It is also through reforms in financial fiscal sectors with fiscal coordination. Maharashtra has also been focusing on the above engines and will immensely benefit from the Budget focus.

1. Focusing on the poor, youth, farmers and women – every sector has been touched in the Budget for better control of market prices/inflation.

2. Providing relief in personal taxes.

3. Focusing on the skill development of youth through exposure to hi-tech learning modules and funding support to MSMEs – Maharashtra is ideally positioned, attracting the support of the Government of India due to the large number of MSMEs, IT training and skilling development programmes, which will benefit Atal Labs.

4. Setting up of Centres of Excellence for Skilling for Make in India Make for the World.

5. Focus on the Artificial Intelligence Centre for education besides the outlay of Rs10,000 crore AI Mission of GoI–will boost the state effort of AI Centre of Excellence.

6. Maharashtra has proactively set up task forces focusing on promoting AI/cybersecurity and deep-tech which will help attract GoI funds and tech support.

7. Maharashtra is proactive in focusing on global capability centres/data centres; these will receive a boost from GoI.

8. Atmanirbhar in missions in pulses and high-yielding seeds, foods and vegetables and cotton protectivity will benefit rural Maharashtra – directly benefiting 1.7 crore farmers.

9. The Geospatial Mission to develop foundational geospatial infrastructure will benefit Maharashtra.

10. With tax burden relief, the state’s consumer industry and market sector will immensely boost employment.

11. Financial sector reforms and high investment generation will positively impact Maharashtra by boosting the employment and services sector.

12. The positive budget will boost the capital markets for Mumbai / Maharashtra, dominating the country.

Dr Vijay Page Founder-director of Bramha Research Foundation