New Delhi, July 11 (IANS) Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday held a meeting with senior NITI Aayog officials and leading economists as part of the wider consultations in the run-up to the Union Budget 2024-25.

The Modi 3.0 government will present its first full budget on July 23.

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman along with Planning Minister Rao Inderjit Singh, Chief Economic Advisor V Anantha Nageswaran, Economist Surjit Bhalla, Agricultural Economist Ashok Gulati and veteran banker K V Kamath were also present at the meeting.

This will be the first major economic document of the Modi 3.0 government, which is expected to outline a road map for making India a developed nation by 2047.

FM Sitharaman has already held widespread discussions including captains of Indian industry, state finance ministers and economists to elicit their views for the forthcoming Budget.

After having presented an interim budget ahead of the Lok Sabha polls, the Finance Minister will now present the full budget for 2024-25 that ensures the economy continues on the high growth trajectory and creates more jobs during the third term of the Modi government.

Sitharaman is expected to increase the exemption limit for income tax to give some relief to the middle class. This would place more disposable income in the hands of consumers and lead to an increase in demand to fuel economic growth.

Given the low fiscal deficit, the hefty Rs 2.11 lakh crore dividend from the RBI and the buoyancy in taxes, the Finance Minister has a lot of headroom for pushing ahead with policies aimed at accelerating growth and implementing social welfare schemes aimed at uplifting the poor.

Prime Minister Modi has already declared that “the next 5 years will be a decisive fight against poverty.”

FM Sitharaman will be presenting the budget at a time when the Indian economy has clocked a robust 8.2 per cent growth in 2023-24, which is the fastest among the world’s major economies, and inflation is coming down to below 5 per cent. The RBI has stated that the economy is headed to an over 8 per cent growth trajectory.

The fiscal deficit has also been reduced from more than 9 per cent of GDP in 2020-21 to the targeted level of 5.1 per cent for 2024-25. This has strengthened the macroeconomic fundamentals of the economy. S&P Global Rating raised India’s sovereign rating outlook to ‘positive’ from ‘stable’, citing the country’s improving finances and strong economic growth.

–IANS

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Chandigarh, July 11 (IANS) After the maiden export of Punjab’s litchi to Britain, UK Deputy High Commissioner Caroline Rowett on Thursday called upon Punjab Horticulture Minister Chetan Singh Jouramajra to discuss strategies for future litchi consignments and sharing agro-allied technologies.

During the meeting here, which was focused on expanding the state’s agricultural export potential and fostering international collaborations, Jouramajra highlighted Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann’s vision of positioning the state’s products on the global map, citing the litchi shipment as a prime example of the government’s initiative to explore new markets.

Potential collaborations in solar energy, artificial intelligence and drone mapping, advancements in precision agriculture, opportunities in agribusiness ventures, exploration of carbon and water credits and development of a unified brand for state’s exports were also discussed, an official statement by the government said.

Rowett, who is based in Chandigarh, expressed interest in the litchi export program and assured the development of a roadmap for future collaborations between Punjab and Britain.

The minister informed the delegation that the next big shipment of litchi from the state would be exported to England soon.

Notably, last month’s litchi export initiative, launched by the government in collaboration with the Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA), marked a significant milestone for the state’s agricultural sector.

The exported litchis, sourced from the sub-mountainous districts of Pathankot, Gurdaspur and Hoshiarpur, are renowned for their deep red colour and superior sweetness due to the region’s favourable climate.

Punjab’s litchi cultivation spans 3,250 hectares, yielding approximately 13,000 metric tons annually, positioning the state as a potential major player in the global litchi market.

–IANS

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Seoul, July 11 (IANS)The Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) called on South Korea on Thursday to introduce tighter fiscal rules and maintain a restrictive policy as its budget is projected to remain in deficit through next year and rapid aging would add longer-term pressure.

“The budget is projected to remain in deficit in 2024 and 2025. South Korea needs to restrain spending through next year,” the OECD said in its biennial economic report on South Korea released in the day, reported Yonhap news agency.

“The government needs to adopt the proposed fiscal rules and continue to carry out regular spending reviews to ensure long-term fiscal sustainability,” it added.

In 2022, the government announced a plan to introduce the fiscal rule that calls for capping the fiscal deficit at 3 per cent of gross domestic product (GDP). If debt exceeds 60 per cent of GDP, the government shall lower the deficit to 2 per cent, though the bill has yet to be passed.

Public debt remains low in South Korea, compared with other OECD peers, but it is “set to increase rapidly going forward and exceed 150 per cent of GDP by 2060” as demographic changes are to increase fiscal pressures from pensions, health care and longer-term care, the OECD said.

In 2023, the country’s total revenue fell 77 trillion won ($55.82 billion) on-year to 497 trillion won, as tax collection went down markedly due to poor corporate performances and the property market slump reducing transaction taxes.

The OECD also pointed to the government’s tax relief as a reason for the marked fall in tax revenue last year.

Responding to population decline, the OECD recommended measures to improve work-life balance and to boost female employment.

The total fertility rate, which means the average number of expected births from a woman in her lifetime, also hit a record yearly low of 0.72 in 2023, which came far below the 2.1 births per woman needed to maintain a stable population without immigration.

“South Korea is advised to tighten and enforce quality criteria for private childcare, improve the accessibility of public childcare, encourage workplace childcare, and extend formal childcare hours to accommodate working parents’ needs,” the organisation said.

Policy suggestions also include expanding parental leave coverage to the entire workplace, increasing the parental leave ceiling for all leave takers, and financing parental leave benefits and other associated charges with public resources.

The OECD also stressed the need to break down labour market dualism, expand social insurance enrollment and consider relaxing regulations on reconstruction and pre-sale price caps as part of efforts to boost the housing supply.

It advised South Korea to introduce a flexible wage system and raise the pension eligibility age so as to extend the retirement age. The current pensionable age in South Korea came to 63, which is one of the lowest among the OECD nations.

The organisation also called on the Seoul government to push for reform of its support scheme for small and mid-sized companies so as to boost their productivity.

–IANS

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Mumbai, July 11 (IANS) Indian equity benchmarks closed flat on Thursday following a volatile session.

At closing, Sensex was at 79,897, down 27 points and Nifty was down 8 points, at 24,315.

During the day, the buying trend was seen in midcap and smallcap stocks rather than largecap stocks.

The Nifty Midcap 100 index closed at 57,148, up 227 points or 0.40 per cent, and the Nifty Smallcap 100 index closed at 18,919, up 129 points or 0.69 per cent.

In the Sensex pack, 16 stocks closed with gains and 14 stocks in the red.

ITC, Tata Motors, Asian Paints, Titan, SBI, Tata Steel, IndusInd Bank, Axis Bank, and HCL Tech were the top gainers. Bajaj Finance, M&M, Sun Pharma, Nestle, NTPC, and Power Grid were the top losers.

The market had started flat in the trading session.

Sensex touched a high of 80,170 and a low of 79,464 during trading hours.

Among the sectoral indices, Media, PSE, Commodity, and Oil & Gas indices were major gainers. Realty, pharma, and auto were the major laggards.

Rupak De, Senior Technical Analyst, LKP Securities said: “The Nifty remained volatile throughout the day before closing flat. In the near term, the Nifty might trade sideways, with 24,150 and 24,400 acting as the key levels. A decisive fall below 24,150 might trigger panic in the market, while a decisive move above 24,400 might induce a rally towards 24,650.”

–IANS

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Lucknow, July 11 (IANS) Uttar Pradesh will now grow apples from Shimla as the apple trees from Shimla have been successfully transplanted from the cold and high mountains to the plain region.

This effort was spearheaded by the Krishi Vigyan Kendra (KVK) in Belipar, the home district of Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath.

Three years ago, in 2021, the Centre introduced some apple varieties from Himachal and planted them locally. By 2023, these trees began bearing fruit.

Dharmendra Singh, a progressive farmer from Unola village in Pipraich, the Chief Minister’s home district, planted 50 apple saplings from Himachal Pradesh in 2022. This year, his trees also bore fruit. This achievement motivated him to establish a one-acre apple orchard this year.

In 2022, Dharmendra Singh planted 50 apple saplings of the Anna and Harman 99 varieties from Himachal. This year, they have borne fruit.

When asked about his interest in apple farming, he explained: “I am passionate about trying new things. During Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath’s tenure, there has been a significant focus on agriculture. Fixed grants are readily available transparently, and the Krishi Vigyan Kendra provides necessary advice. These factors motivated me to start apple farming. Now, I plan to expand. I’ve ordered more plants and am waiting for them to be planted from Himachal Pradesh.”

According to S.P. Singh, Senior Scientist at Krishi Vigyan Kendra Belipar Gorakhpur, in January 2021, three apple varieties – Anna, Harman-99, and Dorset Golden – were brought from Himachal Pradesh and planted at the Centre.

They began bearing fruit after two years. These varieties are well-suited to Purvanchal’s agro-climatic conditions.

The ideal time for planting is between November and February, with January to February being the most favourable months for planting saplings, he said.

Saplings should be planted in rows, maintaining a distance of 10 to 12 feet between each plant. This method allows for approximately 400 saplings per acre.

Eighty per cent of the plants begin bearing fruit within three to four years of planting and reach full fruiting maturity in six years. This makes apple cultivation suitable for short-term gardening.

–IANS

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