Union Budget: Income tax rebate limit raised to ₹7 lakh

Union Budget 2023-24: Highlights

• 12:32 PM: Sitharaman proposed a change in the tax slab under the new tax regime. The new tax rates are:

  • 0 to ₹3 lakhs - nil
  • ₹3 to 6 lakhs - 5%
  • ₹6 to 9 Lakhs - 10%
  • ₹9 to 12 Lakhs - 15%
  • ₹12 to 15 Lakhs - 20%
  • Above 15 Lakhs - 30%

• 12:24 PM: New tax regime: 6 tax slabs, rebate extended on income up to Rs 7 lakh - Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has proposed a new tax regime, under which the income tax rebate limit has been increased from Rs 5 lakh to Rs 7 lakh. “I introduced in 2020, the new personal income tax regime with 6 income slabs, starting from Rs 2.5 lakh. I propose to change the tax structure in this regime by reducing the number of slabs to 5 and increasing the tax exemption limit to Rs 3 lakh,” she said.

• 12:20 PM: Number of basic custom duty rates reduced to 13 - “I propose to reduce the number of basic custom duty rates on goods other than textiles and agriculture, from 21 to 13. As a result, there are minor changes in the basic customs duties, cesses & surcharges on some items including toys, bicycles, and automobiles,” Sitharaman said.

• 12:18 PM: Relief in customs duty on import of certain parts like the camera lens - Government will provide relief in customs duty on the import of certain parts like the camera lens and concession on import of lithium-ion batteries to further promote mobile phone production in India, the minister announced.

• 12:17 PM: Reduction in custom duty rates - I propose to reduce the number of basic custom duty rates on goods other than textiles and agriculture, from 21% to 13%. As a result, there are minor changes in the basic customs duties, cesses & surcharges on some items including toys, bicycles, and automobiles: FM Nirmala Sitharaman

• 12:17 PM: Basic customs duty on kitchen chimney increased, on TV panels reduced - Centre has proposed to increase the basic customs duty on kitchen chimney from 7.5% to 15% and that on heat coils reduced from 20% to 15%. It has also proposed to reduce basic customs duty on parts, and TV panels to 2.5% in a bid to promote value addition in the manufacture of TVs.

• 12:16 PM: National Calamity Custom duty on specified cigarettes proposed to be revised up to 16 percent, says Sitharaman.

• 12:14 PM: One-time new small savings scheme ‘Mahila Samman Saving Certificate’ to be made available for 2 years upto March 2025, with a deposit facility of upto Rs 2 lakh in name of women, with 2-year tenor, with 7.5% fixed rate & partial withdrawal option. The maximum deposit for the senior citizen saving scheme is to be enhanced for Rs 15 lakh to Rs 30 lakh.

• 12:10 PM: The maximum deposit for the senior citizen saving scheme is to be enhanced for Rs 15 lakh to Rs 30 lakh.

• 12:02 PM: MSME assistance to continue - Government infuses Rs 9000 cr into the corpus, reducing the cost of credit. The credit guarantee scheme had a choppy start but over the last two years banks have been brought on board to lend, and the scheme has helped in alleviating stress in the sector.

• 12:01 PM: Finance Minister announced Rs 35 crore for priority capital investment towards energy transition and net zero objectives and energy security by the ministry of petroleum and natural gas.

• 11:53 AM: PM Pranam to be launched to incentivize states and UT to promote alternative fertilizers and balanced use of chemical fertilizers, says FM Sitharaman

• 11:51 AM: Green Growth in India - Target to reach green hydrogen production of 5 MMT by 2030. Rs 35,000 crore allocated towards achieving net zero goal & energy transition: FM

• 11:49 AM: Niti Ayog to continue for 3 years, announces Nirmala Sitharaman

• 11:48 AM: 100 labs for 5G apps to be set up in engineering institutes. Lab-grown diamond production is to be encouraged via a grant to an IIT. To realize the vision of Make AI in India and Make AI work for India, 3 Centres of Excellence for Artificial Intelligence will be set up in top educational institutions: Nirmala Sitharaman

• 11:47 AM: For business establishments required to have a Permanent Account Number, the PAN will be used as a common identifier for all Digital Systems of specified government agencies: FM Nirmala Sitharaman.

• 11:42 AM: National Data Governance policy will be introduced which will enable access to anonymized data, says FM

• 11:38 AM: Nirmala Sitharaman says the urban infra-development fund will be managed by National Housing Bank (NHB) and will be used by public agencies. “We expect to make available Rs 10,000 crore p.a. for urban infra development fund,” she said.

• 11:37 AM: The government has enhanced capital expenditure (capex) outlay by 33% to Rs 10 lakh crore which would be 3.3% of GDP. The amount is almost 3 times the outlay that was made by the government in 2020, says the finance minister.

• 11:36 AM: To improve the social-economic condition of the Particularly Tribal Groups, the PMPBTG Development mission will be launched, saturating PBTG habitations with basic facilities. Rs 15,000 cr to be made available to implement the scheme in next 3 years: FM Nirmala Sitharaman

• 11:35 AM: 50-year interest-free loans will continue for states for another year, announces Sitharaman in the Budget speech.

• 11:32 AM: The government will launch a sub-scheme under PM Matsya Sampada Yojana with an outlay of Rs 6,000 crore to further enable those involved in fisheries, said Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman.

• 11:29 AM: National book trust will be encouraged to replenish non-curricular titles in regional languages and English in physical libraries, says Nirmala Sitharaman.

• 11:26 AM: “The government will launch “sub-scheme for PM Sampada Yojyna to target invest of Rs 6,000 crore to target fisherman… small entrepreneurs,” said Sitharaman.

• 11:24 AM: Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said Union Budget 2023-24 has listed the following seven priorities, or 'saptrishi': Inclusive development, Reaching the last mile, Infra & investment, Unleashing the potential, Green growth, Youth, and Financial sector.

• 11:00 AM: Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman starts her Budget speech in Parliament.

• 10:36 AM: The cabinet meeting chaired by PM Modi ended after 15 mins. The Budget has been approved and will be presented at 11 am.

• 10:22 AM: Prime Minister Narendra Modi is chairing the Union Cabinet meeting at Parliament following which Sitharaman will table the Union Budget 2023 in the Lok Sabha at 11 am.

• 9:59 AM: Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has arrived at Parliament to present her fifth consecutive budget today. A Union Cabinet meeting will be held in Parliament at 10 am following which Sitharaman will table the Union Budget 2023 in the Lok Sabha at 11 am.