research report on india

Indian Equity Strategy

Investment approach, portfolio manager.

The Morgan Stanley Indian Equity Strategy seeks to deliver long term risk adjusted returns by investing in Indian equities. It integrates top down macro-thematic research with bottom-up analysis to build a growth-oriented portfolio.

We believe that an approach integrating macro-thematic research and bottom-up analysis works best in India. Our India portfolio has a growth bias, which we think is a natural outcome of investing in a fast-growing economy like India. We do not compromise on quality of management and corporate governance. Our experience of managing money in India for over two decades has taught us that a fairly concentrated portfolio of 30-40 stocks comprising high conviction names offers the best mix of diversification 1 and activeness.

RISK CONSIDERATIONS

Past performance is not a guarantee of future performance. There can be no assurance that the Strategy will achieve its investment objectives. Portfolios are subject to market risk, which is the possibility that the value of the investments and the income from them can go down as well as up and an investor may not get back the amount invested. Market values can change daily due to economic and other events (e.g. natural disasters, health crises, terrorism, conflicts and social unrest) that affect markets, countries, companies or governments. It is difficult to predict the timing, duration, and potential adverse effects (e.g. portfolio liquidity) of events. Accordingly, you can lose money investing in this strategy. Please be aware that this strategy may be subject to certain additional risks. In general,  equity securities’  values also fluctuate in response to activities specific to a company. Investments in  foreign markets  entail special risks such as currency, political, economic, and market risks. The risks of investing in  emerging market  countries are greater than the risks generally associated with investments in foreign developed countries.  Derivative instruments  can be illiquid, may disproportionately increase losses and may have a potentially large negative impact on the portfolio’s performance. Strategies that specialize in a particular region or market sector are more risky than those which hold a very broad spread of investments. In addition, its value may be substantially affected by economic events in a particular region or industry.

1  Diversification does not eliminate the risk of loss.

2  Source: BSE, NSE.

This communication is only intended for and will be only distributed to persons resident in jurisdictions where such distribution or availability would not be contrary to local laws or regulations.

There is no guarantee that any investment strategy will work under all market conditions, and each investor should evaluate their ability to invest for the long-term, especially during periods of downturn in the market.  Past performance is no guarantee of future results.

A separately managed account may not be appropriate for all investors. Separate accounts managed according to the Strategy include a number of securities and will not necessarily track the performance of any index. Please consider the investment objectives, risks and fees of the Strategy carefully before investing. A minimum asset level is required. For important information about the investment manager, please refer to Form ADV Part 2.

Any views and opinions provided are those of the portfolio management team and are subject to change at any time due to market or economic conditions and may not necessarily come to pass. Furthermore, the views will not be updated or otherwise revised to reflect information that subsequently becomes available or circumstances existing, or changes occurring. The views expressed do not reflect the opinions of all portfolio managers at Morgan Stanley Investment Management (MSIM) or the views of the firm as a whole, and may not be reflected in all the strategies and products that the Firm offers.

All information provided has been prepared solely for information purposes and does not constitute an offer or a recommendation to buy or sell any particular security or to adopt any specific investment strategy. The information herein has not been based on a consideration of any individual investor circumstances and is not investment advice, nor should it be construed in any way as tax, accounting, legal or regulatory advice. To that end, investors should seek independent legal and financial advice, including advice as to tax consequences, before making any investment decision.

This material is a general communication, which is not impartial and all information provided has been prepared solely for informational and educational purposes and does not constitute an offer or a recommendation to buy or sell any particular security or to adopt any specific investment strategy. The information herein has not been based on a consideration of any individual investor circumstances and is not investment advice, nor should it be construed in any way as tax, accounting, legal or regulatory advice. To that end, investors should seek independent legal and financial advice, including advice as to tax consequences, before making any investment decision.

OTHER CONSIDERATIONS

The  MSCI India Index  is a free float-adjusted market capitalization index that is designed to measure the large and mid-cap equity market performance of India. It is not possible to invest directly in an index.

The indexes are unmanaged and do not include any expenses, fees or sales charges. It is not possible to invest directly in an index. Any index referred to herein is the intellectual property (includingregistered trademarks) of the applicable licensor. Any product based on an index is in no way sponsored, endorsed, sold or promoted by the applicable licensor and it shall not have any liability with respect thereto.

The information presented represents how the portfolio management team generally implements its investment process under normal market conditions. Investment team members may change from time to time without notice.

Morgan Stanley Investment Management is the asset management division of Morgan Stanley.

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India’s affluent population is likely to hit 100 million by 2027

India’s real GDP is expected to grow at more than 6% every year between 2023 and 2028, according to Goldman Sachs Research. In tandem, the wealth of affluent Indians is rapidly growing as well. By 2027, according to a report titled “The rise of ‘Affluent India’” by Goldman Sachs Research, this cohort of affluent consumers will increase from around 60 million in 2023 to 100 million people by 2027.

We spoke to Arnab Mitra, an analyst who leads research coverage of Indian consumer brands, about his team’s research, their calculations and forecasts, and the characteristics of affluent Indians.

What kind of data did you use to triangulate your definition of “affluent” Indians? We looked at the number of people who take a flight at least once a year; the number of people who order from food delivery services at least once a month; the number of people who file income taxes on sums of more than 1 million rupees ($12,046); the number of people who have credit cards and postpaid mobile connections. Whichever way we looked, it seemed that the unique number of people who use discretionary products and services is somewhere in the region of 50 or 60 million. Then we looked at the income pyramid, which tells us what the top 60 million people earn. It seems to be around an annual $10,000 per person.

And how has that changed over time? From 2019 to 2023, the cohort has shown a compounded annual growth rate of about 12-13%. That is corroborated by the sectors I mentioned. So the number of credit cards has grown by about 14-15%, for example. The tax filings we looked at, for more than 1 million rupees — they were growing at about 19%.  

One thing we see in your data is how the volume of household financial assets invested in shares has grown conspicuously since 2016. How else do we see the growth of this cohort in the dynamics of the Indian stock markets?

It’s quite clear that companies that address this cohort exclusively, or largely, have been growing much faster than companies that address broad-based consumption. We compared companies in the same sector that cater to upper-income consumers versus a broader group. So in cars, for instance, we compared SUVs to other kinds of cars. Or we compared premium liquor and spirits brands to more mass-market brands. We also looked at hospital or watch companies that exclusively target affluent consumers. All these stocks—they’ve done significantly better in terms of returns.  

How do gold and stock holdings contribute to the wealth of these affluent Indians?

We don’t always have clear data on gold ownership, although there is one government survey showing that 90% of gold is owned by people in the top 10% of India’s earners. With shares — before the pandemic, there were 41 million Indians with online stock trading accounts, and these people would have made a lot of money since then. Again, this syncs with the 60 million figure we postulate for affluent Indians. Now, of course, the number of Indians with such trading accounts has risen to more than 100 million.  

Can we say anything about the non-affluent Indians — the broader population, and how they’ve fared in this same period?

Essentially, the drivers of consumption are different. Inflation impacts the non-affluent cohort more, because they have fewer savings. Even before the pandemic, rural growth in fast-moving consumer goods had slowed down. That possibly has to do with the fact that agricultural output prices have not increased much over the last five years. And there have been disruptions such as demonetization and the introduction of a new, nationwide goods and services tax, followed by the pandemic, which affected a higher number of small businesses and people in low-income segments.

How will this cohort of affluent Indians grow?

After having seen these growth numbers of 12-13%, we investigated whether any of the factors driving upper-income growth are changing. The wealth effect is, if anything, strengthening, because it kicks in with a little bit of a lag — when your stock holdings rise in value the first year, you don’t feel as good as when they rise for the third consecutive year. That’s when you start spending because you feel it’s a little more permanent. So we extrapolated the growth rate between 2019 and 2023, which is around 12-13%, into the next four years, expecting a cohort of 100 million by 2027. And if the wealth effect is strong, it could be even more.

This article is being provided for educational purposes only. The information contained in this article does not constitute a recommendation from any Goldman Sachs entity to the recipient, and Goldman Sachs is not providing any financial, economic, legal, investment, accounting, or tax advice through this article or to its recipient. Neither Goldman Sachs nor any of its affiliates makes any representation or warranty, express or implied, as to the accuracy or completeness of the statements or any information contained in this article and any liability therefore (including in respect of direct, indirect, or consequential loss or damage) is expressly disclaimed.

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What the data says about immigrants in the U.S.

The United States has long had more immigrants than any other country. In fact, the U.S. is home to one-fifth of the world’s international migrants . These immigrants have come from just about every country in the world.

Pew Research Center regularly publishes research on U.S. immigrants . Based on this research, here are answers to some key questions about the U.S. immigrant population.

Pew Research Center conducted this analysis to answer common questions about immigration to the United States and the U.S. immigrant population.

The data in this analysis comes mainly from Center tabulations of Census Bureau microdata from decennial censuses and American Community Survey (IPUMS USA). This analysis also features estimates of the U.S. unauthorized immigrant population . The estimates presented in this research for 2022 are the Center’s latest.

How many people in the U.S. are immigrants?

The U.S. foreign-born population reached a record 46.1 million in 2022. Growth accelerated after Congress made U.S. immigration laws more permissive in 1965. In 1970, the number of immigrants living in the U.S. was less than a quarter of what it is today.

Immigrants today account for 13.8% of the U.S. population. This is a roughly threefold increase from 4.7% in 1970. However, the immigrant share of the population today remains below the record 14.8% in 1890 .

Where are U.S. immigrants from?

Mexico is the top country of birth for U.S. immigrants. In 2022, roughly 10.6 million immigrants living in the U.S. were born there, making up 23% of all U.S. immigrants. The next largest origin groups were those from India (6%), China (5%), the Philippines (4%) and El Salvador (3%).

By region of birth, immigrants from Asia accounted for 28% of all immigrants. Other regions make up smaller shares:

• Latin America (27%), excluding Mexico but including the Caribbean (10%), Central America (9%) and South America (9%)
• Europe, Canada and other North America (12%)
• Sub-Saharan Africa (5%)
• Middle East and North Africa (4%)

How have immigrants’ origin countries changed in recent decades?

Before 1965, U.S. immigration law favored immigrants from Northern and Western Europe and mostly barred immigration from Asia. The 1965 Immigration and Nationality Act opened up immigration from Asia and Latin America. The Immigration Act of 1990 further increased legal immigration and allowed immigrants from more countries to enter the U.S. legally.

Since 1965, about 72 million immigrants have come to the United States from different and more countries than their predecessors:

• From 1840 to 1889, about 90% of U.S. immigrants came from Europe, including about 70% from Germany, Ireland and the United Kingdom.
• Almost 90% of the immigrants who arrived from 1890 to 1919 came from Europe. Nearly 60% came from Italy, Austria-Hungary and Russia-Poland.
• Since 1965, about half of U.S. immigrants have come from Latin America, with about a quarter from Mexico alone. About another quarter have come from Asia. Large numbers have come from China, India, the Philippines, Central America and the Caribbean.

The newest wave of immigrants has dramatically changed states’ immigrant populations . In 1980, German immigrants were the largest group in 19 states, Canadian immigrants were the largest in 11 states and Mexicans were the largest in 10 states. By 2000, Mexicans were the largest group in 31 states.

Today, Mexico remains the largest origin country for U.S. immigrants. However, immigration from Mexico has slowed since 2007 and the Mexican-born population in the U.S. has dropped. The Mexican share of the U.S. immigrant population dropped from 29% in 2010 to 23% in 2022.

Where are recent immigrants coming from?

In 2022, Mexico was the top country of birth for immigrants who arrived in the last year, with about 150,000 people. India (about 145,000) and China (about 90,000) were the next largest sources of immigrants. Venezuela, Cuba, Brazil and Canada each had about 50,000 to 60,000 new immigrant arrivals.

The main sources of immigrants have shifted twice in the 21st century. The first was caused by the Great Recession (2007-2009). Until 2007, more Hispanics than Asians arrived in the U.S. each year. From 2009 to 2018, the opposite was true.

Since 2019, immigration from Latin America – much of it unauthorized – has reversed the pattern again. More Hispanics than Asians have come each year.

What is the legal status of immigrants in the U.S.?

Most immigrants (77%) are in the country legally. As of 2022:

• 49% were naturalized U.S. citizens.
• 24% were lawful permanent residents.
• 4% were legal temporary residents.
• 23% were unauthorized immigrants .

From 1990 to 2007, the unauthorized immigrant population more than tripled in size, from 3.5 million to a record high of 12.2 million. From there, the number slowly declined to about 10.2 million in 2019.

In 2022, the number of unauthorized immigrants in the U.S. showed sustained growth for the first time since 2007, to 11.o million.

As of 2022, about 4 million unauthorized immigrants in the U.S. are Mexican. This is the largest number of any origin country, representing more than one-third of all unauthorized immigrants. However, the Mexican unauthorized immigrant population is down from a peak of almost 7 million in 2007, when Mexicans accounted for 57% of all unauthorized immigrants.

The drop in the number of unauthorized immigrants from Mexico has been partly offset by growth from other parts of the world, especially Asia and other parts of Latin America.

The 2022 estimates of the unauthorized immigrant population are our latest comprehensive estimates. Other partial data sources suggest continued growth in 2023 and 2024 .

Who are unauthorized immigrants?

Virtually all unauthorized immigrants living in the U.S. entered the country without legal permission or arrived on a nonpermanent visa and stayed after it expired.

A growing number of unauthorized immigrants have permission to live and work in the U.S. and are temporarily protected from deportation. In 2022, about 3 million unauthorized immigrants had these temporary legal protections. These immigrants fall into several groups:

• Temporary Protected Status (TPS): About 650,000 immigrants have TPS as of July 2022. TPS is offered to individuals who cannot safely return to their home country because of civil unrest, violence, natural disaster or other extraordinary and temporary conditions.
• Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program (DACA): Almost 600,000 immigrants are beneficiaries of DACA. This program allows individuals brought to the U.S. as children before 2007 to remain in the U.S.
• Asylum applicants: About 1.6 million immigrants have pending applications for asylum in the U.S. as of mid-2022 because of dangers faced in their home country. These immigrants can stay in the U.S. legally while they wait for a decision on their case.
• Other protections: Several hundred thousand individuals have applied for special visas to become lawful immigrants. These types of visas are offered to victims of trafficking and certain other criminal activities.

In addition, about 500,000 immigrants arrived in the U.S. by the end of 2023 under programs created for Ukrainians (U4U or Uniting for Ukraine ) and people from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua and Venezuela ( CHNV parole ). These immigrants mainly arrived too late to be counted in the 2022 estimates but may be included in future estimates.

Do all lawful immigrants choose to become U.S. citizens?

Immigrants who are lawful permanent residents can apply to become U.S. citizens if they meet certain requirements. In fiscal year 2022, almost 1 million lawful immigrants became U.S. citizens through naturalization . This is only slightly below record highs in 1996 and 2008.

Most immigrants eligible for naturalization apply for citizenship, but not all do. Top reasons for not applying include language and personal barriers, lack of interest and not being able to afford it, according to a 2015 Pew Research Center survey .

Where do most U.S. immigrants live?

In 2022, most of the nation’s 46.1 million immigrants lived in four states: California (10.4 million or 23% of the national total), Texas (5.2 million or 11%), Florida (4.8 million or 10%) and New York (4.5 million or 10%).

Most immigrants lived in the South (35%) and West (33%). Another 21% lived in the Northeast and 11% were in the Midwest.

In 2022, more than 29 million immigrants – 63% of the nation’s foreign-born population – lived in just 20 major metropolitan areas. The largest populations were in the New York, Los Angeles and Miami metro areas. Most of the nation’s unauthorized immigrant population (60%) lived in these metro areas as well.

How many immigrants are working in the U.S.?

In 2022, over 30 million immigrants were in the U.S. workforce. Lawful immigrants made up the majority of the immigrant workforce, at 22.2 million. An additional 8.3 million immigrant workers are unauthorized. This is a notable increase over 2019 but about the same as in 2007 .

The share of workers who are immigrants increased slightly from 17% in 2007 to 18% in 2022. By contrast, the share of immigrant workers who are unauthorized declined from a peak of 5.4% in 2007 to 4.8% in 2022. Immigrants and their children are projected to add about 18 million people of working age between 2015 and 2035. This would offset an expected decline in the working-age population from retiring Baby Boomers.

How educated are immigrants compared with the U.S. population overall?

On average, U.S. immigrants have lower levels of education than the U.S.-born population. In 2022, immigrants ages 25 and older were about three times as likely as the U.S. born to have not completed high school (25% vs. 7%). However, immigrants were as likely as the U.S. born to have a bachelor’s degree or more (35% vs. 36%).

Immigrant educational attainment varies by origin. About half of immigrants from Mexico (51%) had not completed high school, and the same was true for 46% of those from Central America and 21% from the Caribbean. Immigrants from these three regions were also less likely than the U.S. born to have a bachelor’s degree or more.

On the other hand, immigrants from all other regions were about as likely as or more likely than the U.S. born to have at least a bachelor’s degree. Immigrants from South Asia (72%) were the most likely to have a bachelor’s degree or more.

How well do immigrants speak English?

About half of immigrants ages 5 and older (54%) are proficient English speakers – they either speak English very well (37%) or speak only English at home (17%).

Immigrants from Canada (97%), Oceania (82%), sub-Saharan Africa (76%), Europe (75%) and South Asia (73%) have the highest rates of English proficiency.

Immigrants from Mexico (36%) and Central America (35%) have the lowest proficiency rates.

Immigrants who have lived in the U.S. longer are somewhat more likely to be English proficient. Some 45% of immigrants who have lived in the U.S. for five years or less are proficient, compared with 56% of immigrants who have lived in the U.S. for 20 years or more.

Spanish is the most commonly spoken language among U.S. immigrants. About four-in-ten immigrants (41%) speak Spanish at home. Besides Spanish, the top languages immigrants speak at home are English only (17%), Chinese (6%), Filipino/Tagalog (4%), French or Haitian Creole (3%), and Vietnamese (2%).

Note: This is an update of a post originally published May 3, 2017.

• Immigrant Populations
• Immigration & Migration
• Unauthorized Immigration

Mohamad Moslimani is a research analyst focusing on race and ethnicity at Pew Research Center .

Jeffrey S. Passel is a senior demographer at Pew Research Center .

How the origins of America’s immigrants have changed since 1850

Facts on u.s. immigrants, 2018, building outpaces population growth in many of china’s urban areas, most popular.

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Struggling SpiceJet to Raise $358 Million – India Report

Bulbul Dhawan , Skift

July 24th, 2024 at 11:00 PM EDT

SpiceJet has been facing financial and legal issues for years. However, the positive momentum of the Indian aviation industry is keeping it from going bankrupt, and that is what the airline is banking on.

Bulbul Dhawan

The Skift India Newsletter is your go-to platform for all news related to travel, tourism, airlines, and hospitality in India.

Low-cost Indian carrier SpiceJet has secured its board’s approval to raise up to INR 30 billion ($358 million) through institutional investors, a move disclosed in a filing to the Indian stock exchange on Tuesday.

This infusion of funds aims to help the airline reduce its debt and bolster its balance sheet, especially as it grapples with legal battles over unpaid dues to aircraft lessors, vendors, and suppliers.

SpiceJet recently announced a 72% reduction in its net loss versus last year. But, despite this improvement, the airline has posted losses for six straight years.

The financial woes of SpiceJet are further compounded by lessors taking legal action to recover unpaid dues and requesting the country’s aviation regulator to de-register the airline’s planes.

Struggling to raise funds, SpiceJet has faced challenges in getting its grounded jets back in the air, which has led to a loss in market share. In the June quarter this year, SpiceJet’s market share fell to 4.2%, from 14.5% in the same quarter in 2019.

SpiceJet’s Fundraising Efforts: In January, SpiceJet’s board approved a proposal to raise approximately INR 22.5 billion ($268.8 million) from 64 entities. These entities included financial institutions, foreign institutional investors, high net-worth individuals, and private investors.

By February, the airline successfully raised around INR 10.6 billion ($126.6 million) from this effort.

In August of the previous year, SpiceJet’s CEO, Ajay Singh infused INR 5 billion ($60 million) to help revive the airline’s grounded planes.

Karnataka Tourism Minister Rules Out Casinos in the State

The tourism minister of the southern state of Karnataka has ruled out the possibility of casinos in the state. While speaking on the tourism policy through 2029, the minister said that the state would not follow the path of opening integrated resorts and gambling facilities in order to attract international visitors. 

Instead, the state is planning to focus on its cultural and natural assets to draw tourists. He also said that Goa has witnessed a flourishing casino industry, but it has led to a negative transformation of the region.

Currently, the Indian coastal state of Goa has 16 land-based and floating casinos, on which the state is currently dependent for tourism, Goa’s tourism minister Rohan Khaunte had said last year. 

However, Goa is also in the process of transforming its tourism positioning , moving from the current image of beaches, nightlife, and parties, to a holistic tourist destination which is suitable for digital nomads, families, and explorers. 

Kashmir, Abu Dhabi, Azerbaijan: New Mini-Vacation Destinations For Indians

Indian travelers are looking at Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, and Andaman Islands as preferred tourist destinations during long weekends in August, data from Thomas Cook and SOTC shows. These destinations, while quite explored, have not been consistently at the top of the travel trends for Indian travelers, indicating a shift in preferences. 

For short-haul travel destinations, Indians are traveling to Sri Lanka and Bhutan, the data revealed. Among international destinations, Abu Dhabi has overtaken Dubai as the most preferred destination, and locations like Azerbaijan and Georgia have ranked higher than popular vacation spots for Indians such as Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam. 

The data by the travel companies also showed that working professionals, couples, millennials, Gen Zs, and multigenerational families are the segments that are driving demands for this period. Indians are also exploring experiences such as wildlife safaris and cruises.

Israel Could Roll Out E-Visa Program for Indian Travelers: Report

Israel could roll out an e-visa program for Indian travelers later this year, an Economic Times report cited Israel tourism ministry’s director of marketing Amruta Bangera as saying. The nation presently does not offer e-visas to any country. 

The minister said that India would be the first country for which it will be issuing e-visas, and added that the country believes in the potential of the Indian market. 

Israel is looking to attract 70,000 Indian tourists by 2025 and is hoping to expand this figure to 100,000 by 2026. If Israel meets its 2025 targets, it would surpass the pre-Covid figure of 65,100 Indian travelers. In 2023, about 42,000 Indian tourists visited Israel by September. 

Air India Express Commences Bangalore-Abu Dhabi Flight

Budget airline Air India Express has commenced its Bangalore to Abu Dhabi flight this week. This marks the airline’s inaugural international flight from Bangalore.

With the addition of this flight, the airline is now operating direct flights to the capital of the U.A.E. from eight Indian cities, including Mumbai, Kochi, and Thiruvananthapuram.

Bangalore is the largest station for Air India Express, and the carrier operates more than 200 flights a week from the city. It connects to nearly 30 destinations from Bangalore. 

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Tags: abu dhabi , Air India Express , aircraft lessors , airlines , azerbaijan , budget , budget carriers , casino , casinos , debt crisis , e-visas , fundings , fundraising , goa tourism , india , india outbound , india travel , indian airlines , integrated resorts , Israel tourism , kashmir , skift india report , spicejet , tourism , Travel Trends , visas

Photo credit: 2024 fiscal marked the sixth consecutive year that SpiceJet posted a loss. Md Shaifuzzaman Ayon / Pexels

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• India's Union Budget 2024-25: Key Highlights

• Team India Blogs

Earlier today, Nirmala Sitharaman, Hon’ble Finance Minister, presented the first budget of the current government. The budget, particularly, focuses on employment, skilling, MSMEs, and the middle class and for all-around prosperity. The budget also details nine priorities for generating ample opportunities for all and suggests specific actions and reforms required to realise the goal of Viksit Bharat.

For the full speech, please refer: https://www.indiabudget.gov.in/doc/Budget_Speech.pdf

Budget Theme

• Focus on employment, skilling, MSMEs, and the middle class. 
• Announcement of Prime Minister’s package of 5 schemes and initiatives to facilitate employment, skilling and other opportunities for 4.1 Cr youth over a 5-year period with a central outlay of INR 2 Lakh Cr.
• Provision of INR 1.48 Lakh Cr for education, employment and skilling.

Budget Priorities

• Productivity and resilience in Agriculture
• Employment & Skilling
• Inclusive Human Resource Development and Social Justice
• Manufacturing & Services
• Urban Development
• Energy Security
• Infrastructure
• Innovation, Research & Development and
• Next Generation Reforms
• Subsequent budgets will build on these, and add more priorities and actions.

Priority 1: Productivity and Resilience in Agriculture

Transforming agriculture research.

• A comprehensive review of the agriculture research setup will be undertaken to bring the focus on raising productivity and developing climate-resilient varieties. Funding will be provided in challenge mode, including to the private sector. Domain experts both from the government and outside will oversee the conduct of such research.

Release of new varieties

• New 109 high-yielding and climate-resilient varieties of 32 field and horticulture crops will be released for cultivation by farmers.

Natural Farming

• In the next two years, 1 Cr farmers will be initiated into natural farming supported by certification and branding. Implementation will be through scientific institutions and willing gram panchayats.
• 10,000 need-based bio-input resource centres will be established.

Missions for pulses and oilseeds

• Production, storage, and marketing will be strengthened to achieve self-sufficiency. 
• A strategy is being developed to achieve ‘atmanirbharta’ for oil seeds such as mustard, groundnut, sesame, soybean, and sunflower. 

Vegetable production & Supply Chains

• Large-scale clusters for vegetable production will be developed closer to major consumption centres.
• Farmer-Producer Organizations, cooperatives and start-ups for vegetable supply chains including for collection, storage, and marketing will be promoted.

Digital Public Infrastructure for Agriculture

• The government, in partnership with the states, will facilitate the implementation of the Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) in agriculture for coverage of farmers and their lands in 3 years. 
• During this year, digital crop survey for Kharif using the DPI will be taken up in 400 districts. The details of 6 Cr farmers and their lands will be brought into the farmer and land registries. Further, the issuance of Jan Samarth based Kisan Credit Cards will be enabled in 5 states.

Shrimp Production & Export

• Financial support for setting up a network of Nucleus Breeding Centres for Shrimp Broodstocks to be provided. Financing for shrimp farming, processing and export will be facilitated through NABARD .

National Cooperation Policy

• National Cooperation Policy for systematic, orderly and all-round development of the cooperative sector will be drafted to fast-track the growth of the rural economy and employment generation opportunities.
• INR 1.52 Lakh Cr is provided for agriculture and the allied sector.

Priority 2: Employment & Skilling

Employment linked incentive.

• Scheme A: First Timers To provide one-month wage (up to INR 15,000) to all persons newly entering the workforce in all formal sectors. The eligibility limit will be a salary of  INR 1 Lakh per month .
• Scheme B: Job Creation in Manufacturing To incentivise additional employment in the manufacturing sector, linked to the employment of first-time employees.
• Scheme C: Support to employers  To cover additional employment in all sectors. The government will reimburse employers up to INR 3,000 per month for 2 years towards their EPFO contribution for each additional employee.

Participation of women in the workforce

• Working women hostels are to be established in collaboration with the industry. The partnership will also seek to organize women-specific skilling programmes, and promotion of market access for women SHG enterprises.

Skilling programme 

• 20 Lakh youth will be skilled over a 5-year period
• 1,000 Industrial Training Institutes will be upgraded in hub and spoke arrangements with an outcome orientation
• Course content and design will be aligned with the industry demand, and new courses will be introduced for emerging needs.

Skilling Loans

• Model Skill Loan Scheme to be revised to facilitate loans up to INR 7.5 Lakh with a guarantee from a government-promoted fund, thus benefitting 25,000 students every year.

Education Loans

• For helping youth not covered under any benefit under government schemes and policies, financial support for loans up to INR 10 Lakh for higher education in domestic institutions will be provided.

Priority 3: Inclusive Human Resource Development and Social Justice

Saturation approach.

• For achieving social justice comprehensively, the saturation approach of covering all eligible people through various programmes, including those for education and health, will be adopted.
• Schemes supporting economic activities by craftsmen, artisans, self-help groups, scheduled caste, scheduled tribe and women entrepreneurs, and street vendors will be strengthened.
• A plan for the all-round development of the eastern region, including  Bihar, Jharkhand, West Bengal, Odisha, and Andhra Pradesh, will be formulated. The plan will cover the development of human resources, infrastructure, and the generation of economic opportunities.
• On the Amritsar Kolkata Industrial Corridor, which will catalyse the industrial development of the eastern region, an industrial node at Gaya will be developed. 
• In Bihar, development of road connectivity and power projects will be supported and new airports, medical colleges and sports infrastructure will be constructed.  

Women-led development

• For promoting women-led development, the budget carries an allocation of more than INR 3 Lakh Cr for schemes benefitting women and girls. 

Priority 4: Manufacturing & Services

Support for the promotion of msmes.

• For facilitating term loans to MSMEs for the purchase of machinery and equipment without collateral or third-party guarantee, a credit guarantee scheme will be introduced. The scheme will operate on the pooling of credit risks of such MSMEs. A separately constituted self-financing guarantee fund will provide, to each applicant, a guarantee covering up to INR 100 Cr, while the loan amount may be larger. 
• Public sector banks will build their in-house capability to assess MSMEs for credit, instead of relying on external assessment. They will also take a lead in developing or getting developed a new credit assessment model, based on the scoring of digital footprints of MSMEs in the economy. This is expected to be a significant improvement over the traditional assessment of credit eligibility based only on asset or turnover criteria. That will also cover MSMEs without a formal accounting system.
• A new mechanism for facilitating continuation of bank credit to MSMEs during their stress period was announced. While being in the Special Mention Account (SMA) stage for reasons beyond their control, MSMEs will have access to credit to continue their business and to avoid getting into the NPA stage. Credit availability will be supported through a guarantee from a government-promoted fund.
• The limit of Mudra loans will be enhanced to INR 20 Lakh for those entrepreneurs who have availed and successfully repaid previous loans under the Tarun category.
• The turnover threshold of buyers for mandatory onboarding on the TReDS platform is to be reduced to INR 250 Cr. This will help MSMEs to unlock their working capital by converting their trade receivables into cash. This measure will bring 22 more CPSEs and 7000 more companies onto the platform. Medium enterprises will also be included in the scope of the suppliers.
• SIDBI will open new branches to expand its reach to serve all major MSME clusters within 3 years and provide direct credit to them. With the opening of 24 such branches this year, the service coverage will expand to 168 out of 242 major clusters.
• Financial support for setting up 50 multi-product food irradiation units in the MSME sector will be provided. The setting up of 100 food quality and safety testing labs with NABL accreditation will be facilitated.
• To enable MSMEs and traditional artisans to sell their products in international markets, E-Commerce Export Hubs will be set up in PPP mode. These hubs, under a seamless regulatory and logistic framework, will facilitate trade and export-related services under one roof.

Measures for promotion of Manufacturing & Services 

Industrial parks.

• Development of investment-ready plug-and-play industrial parks with complete infrastructure in or near 100 cities, in partnership with the states and private sector, by better-using town planning schemes.
• Twelve industrial parks under the National Industrial Corridor Development Programme are to be sanctioned.

Rental Housing

• Rental housing with dormitory-type accommodation for industrial workers will be facilitated in PPP mode with VGF support and commitment from anchor industries.

Shipping Industry

• Ownership, leasing and flagging reforms will be implemented to improve the share of the Indian shipping industry and generate more employment.

Critical Mineral Mission

• For domestic production, recycling of critical minerals, and overseas acquisition of critical mineral assets. Its mandate will include technology development, skilled workforce, extended producer responsibility framework, and a suitable financing mechanism.

Offshore mining of minerals

• Auction of the first tranche of offshore blocks for mining, building on the exploration already carried out.

Digital Public Infrastructure Applications

• Development of DPI applications at population scale for productivity gains, business opportunities, and innovation by the private sector. These are planned in the areas of credit, e-commerce, education, health, law and justice, logistics, MSME, services delivery, and urban governance.

Integrated Technology Platform for IBC eco-system

• An Integrated Technology Platform will be set up for improving the outcomes under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC) for achieving consistency, transparency, timely processing and better oversight for all stakeholders.

Voluntary closure of LLPs

• The services of the Centre for Processing Accelerated Corporate Exit (C-PACE) will be extended for the voluntary closure of LLPs to reduce the closure time.

National Company Law Tribunals 

• Appropriate changes to the IBC, reforms and strengthening of the tribunal and appellate tribunals will be initiated to speed up insolvency resolution. Additional tribunals will be established. Out of those, some will be notified to decide cases exclusively under the Companies Act.

Debt Recovery

• Steps for reforming and strengthening debt recovery tribunals will be taken. Additional tribunals will be established to speed up recovery.

Priority 5: Urban Development

Cities as growth hubs.

• Working with  states, the government will facilitate development of Cities as Growth Hubs. This will be achieved through economic and transit planning, and orderly development of peri-urban areas utilising town planning schemes. 

Creative redevelopment of cities

• For creative brownfield redevelopment of existing cities with a transformative impact, the government will formulate a framework for enabling policies, market-based mechanisms and regulation. 

Transit Oriented Development 

• Transit Oriented Development plans for 14 large cities with a population above 30 Lakh will be formulated, along with an implementation and financing strategy.  

Urban Housing 

• Under the PM Awas Yojana Urban 2.0, the housing needs of 1 Cr urban poor and middle-class families will be addressed with an investment of INR 10 Lakh Cr. This will include the central assistance of INR 2.2 Lakh Cr in the next 5 years.
• Enabling policies and regulations for efficient and transparent rental housing markets with enhanced availability will also be put in place.

Water Supply and Sanitation 

• In partnership with the State Governments and Multilateral Development Banks, water supply, sewage treatment and solid waste management projects and services for 100 large cities through bankable projects will be promoted. These projects will also envisage the use of treated water for irrigation and filling up of tanks in nearby areas.

Priority 6: Energy Security

Energy transition.

• A policy document on appropriate energy transition pathways that balances the imperatives of employment, growth and environmental sustainability will be drafted. 

PM Surya Ghar Muft Bijli Yojana

• PM Surya Ghar Muft Bijli Yojana has generated remarkable response with more than 1.28 Cr registrations and 14 Lakh applications, and the government will further encourage it. 

Pumped Storage Policy

• A policy for promoting pumped storage projects will be drafted for electricity storage and facilitating smooth integration of the growing share of renewable energy with its variable & intermittent nature in the overall energy mix. 

Research and development of small and modular nuclear reactors

• Nuclear energy is expected to form a significant part of the energy mix for Viksit Bharat. 
• The government will partner with the private sector for setting up Bharat Small Reactors, research & development of Bharat Small Modular Reactor, and research & development of newer technologies for nuclear energy.

Advanced Ultra Super Critical Thermal Power Plants

• The development of indigenous technology for Advanced Ultra Super Critical (AUSC) thermal power plants with much higher efficiency has been completed. A joint venture between NTPC and BHEL will set up a full-scale 800 MW commercial plant using AUSC technology. The government will provide the required fiscal support. Moving forward, development of indigenous capacity for the production of high-grade steel and other advanced metallurgy materials for these plants will result in strong spin-off benefits for the economy.

Roadmap for ‘hard to abate’ industries

• A roadmap for moving the ‘hard to abate’ industries from ‘energy efficiency’ targets to ‘emission targets’ will be formulated. Appropriate regulations for the transition of these industries from the current ‘Perform, Achieve and Trade’ mode to the ‘Indian Carbon Market’ mode will be put in place. 

Support to traditional micro and small industries 

• An investment-grade energy audit of traditional micro and small industries in 60 clusters, including brass and ceramic, will be facilitated. Financial support will be provided for shifting them to cleaner forms of energy and implementation of energy efficiency measures. The scheme will be replicated in another 100 clusters in the next phase.

Priority 7: Infrastructure

Infrastructure investment by central government.

• Strong fiscal support for infrastructure to continue over the next 5 years, in conjunction with imperatives of other priorities and fiscal consolidation. This year, INR 11,11,111 Cr has been provisioned for capital expenditure. This would be 3.4% of our GDP.

Infrastructure investment by state governments

• Encouragement to states to provide support of similar scale for infrastructure, subject to their development priorities. A provision of 1.5 Lakh Cr for long-term interest-free loans has been made to support the states in their resource allocation.

Private investment in infrastructure

• Investment in infrastructure by  private sector will be promoted through viability gap funding and enabling policies and regulations. A market-based financing framework will be brought out. 

Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY) 

• Phase IV of PMGSY will be launched to provide all-weather connectivity to 25,000 rural habitations.
• Comprehensive development of Vishnupad Temple Corridor and Mahabodhi Temple Corridor will be supported to transform them into world-class pilgrim and tourist destinations.
• Comprehensive development of Rajgir. 
• The development  of Nalanda as a tourist centre besides reviving Nalanda University. 
• Development of Odisha’s scenic beauty, temples, monuments, craftsmanship, wildlife sanctuaries, natural landscapes and pristine beaches to make it an ultimate tourism destination.

Priority 8: Innovation, Research & Development

• Anusandhan National Research Fund for basic research and prototype development to be operationalised. Further, a mechanism to be established for spurring private sector-driven research and innovation at commercial scale with a financing pool of INR 1 Lakh Cr. 

Space Economy

• With government's continued emphasis on expanding the space economy by 5 times in the next 10 years, a venture capital fund of INR 1,000 Cr will be set up. 

Priority 9: Next Generation Reforms

Economic policy framework.

• An Economic Policy Framework to be formulated to delineate the overarching approach to economic development and set the scope of the next generation of reforms for facilitating employment opportunities and sustaining high growth. 
• The government will initiate and incentivize reforms for improving productivity of factors of production, and facilitating markets and sectors to become more efficient. These reforms will cover all factors of production, namely land, labour, capital and entrepreneurship, and technology as an enabler of improving total factor productivity and bridging inequality. 
• Land-related reforms and actions, both in rural and urban areas, will cover land administration, planning and management, and urban planning, usage and building bylaws. These will be incentivized for completion within the next 3 years through appropriate fiscal support. 
• Rural land-related actions will include: Assignment of Unique Land Parcel Identification Number (ULPIN) or Bhu-Aadhaar for all lands, Digitization of cadastral maps, Survey of map sub-divisions as per current ownership, Establishment of land registry, and Linking to the  farmers registry. These actions will also facilitate credit flow and other agricultural services.
• Land records in urban areas will be digitized with GIS mapping. An IT-based system for property record administration, updating, and tax administration will be established. These will also facilitate the improvement of the financial position of local urban bodies.
• The government will facilitate the provision of a wide array of services to labour, including those for employment and skilling. A comprehensive integration of e-shram portal with other portals will facilitate such one-stop solution. Open architecture databases for the rapidly changing labour market, skill requirements and available job roles, and a mechanism to connect job-aspirants with potential employers and skill providers will be covered in these services.
• Shram Suvidha and Samadhan portals will be revamped to enhance  ease of compliance for industry and trade.
• To meet the financing needs of the economy, the government will bring out a financial sector vision and strategy document to prepare the sector in terms of size, capacity and skills. This will set the agenda for the next 5 years and guide the work of the government, regulators, financial institutions and market participants.
• A taxonomy for climate finance for enhancing the availability of capital for climate adaptation and mitigation to be developed. This will support achievement of the country’s climate commitments and green transition. 
• Governemnt will seek the required legislative approval for providing an efficient and flexible mode for financing leasing of aircrafts and ships, and pooled funds of private equity through a ‘variable company structure’.
• The rules and regulations for Foreign Direct Investment and Overseas Investments will be simplified to facilitate foreign direct investments, nudge prioritization, and  promote opportunities for using Indian Rupee as a currency for overseas investments. ​​​​​​
• Adoption of technology towards digitalization of the economy to be enhanced.
• For enhancing ‘Ease of Doing Business’, the government is already working on the Jan Vishwas Bill 2.0. Further, states will be incentivized for implementation of their Business Reforms Action Plans and digitalization.
• For improving data governance, collection, processing and management of data and statistics, different sectoral data bases, including those established under the Digital India mission, will be utilized with active use of technology tools.

Indirect Taxes

A comprehensive review of the rate structure over the next six months will rationalise and simplify customs duty rates to facilitate trade, remove duty inversion, and reduce disputes.

Sector-specific customs duty proposals:

Medicines and Medical Equipment

Fully exempt three more cancer medicines from customs duties.

Changes in the BCD on x-ray tubes & flat panel detectors for use in medical x-ray machines under the Phased Manufacturing Programme, so as to synchronise them with domestic capacity addition.

Mobile Phone and Related Parts

Reduction of the BCD on mobile phones, mobile PCBA and mobile chargers to 15%.

Critical Minerals

The government proposed to fully exempt customs duties on 25 critical minerals and reduce BCD on two of them.  This will provide a major fillip to the processing and refining of such minerals and help secure their availability for strategic and important sectors like nuclear energy, renewable energy, space, defence, telecommunications, and high-tech electronics.  

Solar Energy 

To support the energy transition, the list of exempted capital goods for use in the manufacture of solar cells and panels in the country is to be expanded. Further, in view of sufficient domestic manufacturing capacity of solar glass and tinned copper interconnect, the government proposed not to extend the exemption of customs duties provided to them.

Marine Products

To enhance competitiveness, BCD on certain broodstock, polychaete worms, shrimp and fish feed to be reduced to 5%. 

Exemption of customs duty on various inputs for the manufacture of shrimp and fish feed .

Leather and Textile 

To enhance the competitiveness of exports, the government proposed to reduce BCD on real down filling material from duck or goose. 

The list of exempted goods for manufacture of leather and textile garments, footwear and other leather articles for export to be expanded. 

To  rectify inversion in duty, the government proposed to reduce BCD, subject to conditions, on methylene diphenyl diisocyanate (MDI) for manufacture of spandex yarn from 7.5 to 5%.

The export duty structure on raw hides, skins and leather is proposed to be simplified and rationalised.

Precious Metals

To enhance domestic value addition in gold and precious metal jewellery in the country, reduction in customs duties on gold and silver to 6% and that on platinum to 6.4%. 

Other Metals

To reduce the cost of production of Steel and copper, the government proposed to remove the BCD on ferro nickel and blister copper. The nil BCD on ferrous scrap and nickel cathode and concessional BCD of 2.5% on copper scrap continue.

Electronics

• To increase value addition in the domestic electronics industry,  removal of the BCD, subject to conditions, on oxygen-free copper for the manufacture of resistors. Certain parts for the manufacture of connectors are to be exempted as well.

Chemicals and Petrochemicals

To support existing and new capacities in the pipeline, an increase in the BCD on ammonium nitrate from 7.5 to 10%.

To curb imports of PVC flex banners, the BCD on them is to be increased from 10 to 25%.

Telecommunication Equipment

To incentivise domestic manufacturing, BCD is to be increased from 10 to 15% on PCBA of specified telecom equipment. 

Trade facilitation

To promote domestic aviation and boat and ship MRO, the period for exporting goods imported for repairs will be increased to one year. 

The time limit for re-import of goods for repairs under warranty is to be increased from three to five years.

Direct Taxes

To bolster the Indian start-up eco-system, boost the entrepreneurial spirit and support innovation, the angel tax is to be abolished for all classes of investors.

To give a fillip to cruise tourism, an employment-generating industry, a simpler tax regime for foreign shipping companies operating domestic cruises in the country was proposed.

To further promote the development of the diamond cutting and polishing sector, safe harbour rates to be applied for foreign mining companies selling raw diamonds in the country.

To attract foreign capital for India’s development needs,  corporate tax rate on foreign companies will be reduced from 40 to 35%.   

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