📊 What is that one thing you should know about 'Budget 2024'?

A budget that shouts political and economic confidence

Dear Reader, 

It was the shortest Budget speech delivered by Nirmala Sitharaman as the Finance Minister, coming upto less than an hour. Technically, it wasn't even a full Budget but an interim Budget. The full document will be released in July, after the elections. 

All of this is however common knowledge. That's not why we are here—to repeat what you already know. 

Our aim is to distill the entire Budget speech and all its analyses and present it to you in a simple, engaging manner. To that end, if this Budget can be described in one line, it would be this: confidence from discipline. 

The Narendra Modi government has run a sound, sensible, disciplined economic policy, (ably assisted by an equally sensible RBI at the monetary end). Leakages have been plugged;  welfare delivery has been expanded and targeted to the last individual at the same time; bank balance sheets have been cleaned; fiscal discipline maintained; and a massive infrastructure project unleashed. The boring, grinding, heavy lifting of governance.

All of this required discipline for it to be seen through. Despite global pressures of disease and war, and recent push and pull of freebie politics, the Modi government remained steadfast to its approach to economics. That requires discipline. 

This discipline is now giving way to confidence. So much so that in an election year the Union Finance Minister is giving the shortest Budget speech in memory and emphatically stating that there will be NO changes in the tax slabs. 

It's like the student who has revised the curriculum before the exam three times over. He was disciplined in his study, so is now confident on the eve of the exam. 

Discipline pays. 

Read more about this view of Interim Budget 2024 here:

1. A Budget That Shouts Political And Economic Confidence

2. No Frill, No Thrill, Just Chill: Nirmala Sitharaman’s ‘Interim Budget 2024’

Arush Tandon

More of Swarajya's coverage of Budget

1. 18 Key Highlights From Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman's Speech

2. Nothing Unintentional About This: Lakshadweep Was Only State/UT Named By Nirmala Sitharaman In Her Speech

3. Budget 2024 Mentions Vaccination In Girls To Prevent Cervical Cancer — Why That Matters

4. Government Allocates Rs 6.2 Lakh Crore For Defence, A Hike Of Rs 27,000 Crore Over 2023-24

5. Government To Set Up Committee To Tackle Population Growth, Demographic Changes