The much-awaited and highly anticipated Union Budget of 2025 for the fiscal year 2025-26 is slated to happen on February 1.
The Union finance minister, Nirmala Sitharaman, will present her historic 8th budget at 11:00 IST. As India looks to navigate through some volatile times shrouded by global uncertainties, expectations from the Union Budget exploring myriad possibilities are only going to be high.
The Need For Sustainable Growth
“Aligned with India’s ambitious vision of becoming a USD 7 trillion economy by 2030, Budget 2025 must prioritise rapid infrastructure development to enable the logistics and transportation sector to realise its full potential as a catalyst for economic progress and sustainable growth.”, added, Ketan Kulkarni, Managing Director, Gati Express and Supply Chain Limited
The packaging and logistics industry is crucial to any economy, especially a developing economy like India.
Incentivising Transformation
The industry anticipates bold initiatives aimed at improving last-mile connectivity and transformative reforms to strengthen the logistics and transportation ecosystem.
Furthermore, the budget presents an opportunity to enhance the ease of doing business through initiatives like ‘Jan Vishwas Bill 2.0’ and accelerating digitalisation efforts to optimise regulatory processes.
According to Ketan Kulkarni increasing the collateral-free Mudra loan limit and establishing dedicated e-commerce export hubs would also be significant in fostering the growth of MSMEs, a crucial driver of India’s economy.
Health and AI
AI and adoption of AI have been at the centre of multiple discourses
According to Masaharu Morita, Founder and Program Director at NURA India’s healthcare industry hopes that the government will surely look at launching programmes and policies in the upcoming Budget 2025 that support the growth of the AI ecosystem in India with a clear roadmap to position the country as a global hub for the AI-enabled healthcare services.
With the help of government’s industry-friendly policies, AI-enabled healthcare companies can channelize more investments in the healthcare sector, particularly in the adoption of AI and advanced technologies.
Budgetary Allocation For R&D
Higher budgetary allocation for healthcare in the upcoming budget particularly in promoting R&D and integration of AI solutions in diagnostics, telemedicine, and personalised healthcare would be very beneficial for the sector as a whole.
To address emerging health challenges, the upcoming budget should focus on investing in preventive care, enhancing care coordination and management, and addressing healthcare gaps, particularly with the help of emerging technologies such as AI and blockchain.
“This would align the industry with global standards while creating a competitive and future-ready ecosystem that underscores the government’s commitment to a seamless and resilient business environment.”, added, Masaharu Morita.
Aiding Adoption
A key expectation is the incentivisation of EV charging infrastructure, which is critical to driving sustainability through greater adoption of electric vehicles in logistics operations.
By placing a stronger emphasis on digital transformation, Budget 2025 could significantly improve the efficiency and agility of the logistics sector.
