Budget 2021 LIVE Updates: Aatmanirbhar Bharat to strengthen India’s self-reliance in agriculture, says Venkaiah Naidu

Budget 2021 LATEST Updates: Aatmanirbhar Bharat isn’t just confined to manufacturing in India but also aimed at elevating standard of living of every Indian and boosting self-confidence of country, said Vice-President M Venkaiah Naidu.

The government would like to clarify that the rights and facilities that were available before the formation of the three farm laws have not been cut short, in fact with these new agricultural reforms the govt has provided new facilities and rights to farmers, said President Ram Nath Kovind on Friday.

To help small and marginal farmers, the government has transferred about Rs 1.13 lakh crore directly to their accounts. Apart from that, farmers have also greatly benefited from the Fasal Bima Yojna, said President Ram Nath Kovind.

The national flag and a holy day like Republic Day were insulted in the past few days. The Constitution that provides us Freedom of Expression, is the same Constitution that teaches us that law & rules have to be followed seriously, said President Ram Nath Kovind during for the joint Parliamentary session.

The crucial Budget session of Parliament is set for a stormy start with as many as 18 opposition parties announcing their decision to boycott the President’s address to a joint sitting of both houses on Friday, in solidarity with the farmers agitating against the three contentious farm laws.

The session is also likely to witness acrimonious scenes, with the opposition all set to corner the government on issues like recession, job losses, handling of COVID crisis, LAC stand-off with China and the WhatsApp chat leaks of Arnab Goswami.

Alleging that the farm laws have been pushed by the BJP government without a national consensus, the opposition parties announced their decision on Thursday to boycott the President’s address, a move termed as “most unfortunate” by Parliamentary Affairs Minister Prahlad Joshi.

To seek the cooperation of various parties for the smooth functioning of the Budget session, Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla has convened a meeting of all political parties on Friday which is expected to be attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

The session will begin with the President’s address followed by the presentation of the Economic Survey.

The Union Budget will be presented by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on 1 February. Both the houses will also debate on the Motion of thanks to the President’s address after the budget presentation.

The Economic Survey 2021 will be tabled on 29 January, a couple of days prior to the Union Budget, which will be tabled on 1 February.

President Ram Nath Kovind will address the joint sitting of both Houses on the same day.

Prepared by the Economic Division of the Department of Economic Affairs (DEA) under the guidance of the CEA, the Economic Survey is a detailed report on the state of the economy in the past one year. It lists key challenges expected and the way out from them.

The Economic Survey gets approved by the finance minister after the document is prepared. The first Economic Survey was presented in 1960-51 and until 1964, it was released at the time of the Budget.

While the Economic Survey is a crucial document that provides an extensive official version of the government’s take on the economic condition of the country, in reality, the government is not constitutionally bound to present the Economic Survey or to follow the recommendations made in it.

The document also analyses trends in money supply, infrastructure, agricultural and industrial production along with employment, prices, exports, imports, foreign exchange reserves and other important factors that may impact the Budget.

Apart from this, economic magnitudes are grouped, such as how much is set aside for capital formation etc. This helps in better appreciation of the impact of government receipts and expenditure on the other sectors of the economy.

The Economic Survey 2021 is of particular significance as it during the COVID-19 pandemic. As per the First Advance estimates of the government, the economy may contract by 7.7 percent. The survey is likely to outline plans to put the economy back on track to achieve the $5 trillion goal that was set in 2019.