IIM Bangalore

As always, a random quizzing of five students from IIM Bangalore throws up rewardingly different analyses of the budget. For instance, it could be a bit of a pocket-pincher for students because cesses on services will make eating out and flying costly. But raising the limit for presumptive taxes will help businesses and professionals will be good for some. Others felt there hasn’t been any innovative announcement to increase the tax base which means the existing middle-class taxpayer has been burdened further.

However, all of them reckon that the government has gauged the country’s mood well by focusing on agriculture and infrastructure. Asked if the pro-poor approach meant the PM has junked the Gujarat model of pro-corporate development, Kushal Singhal, scoffed: “No, I feel that, in fact, Modi has learned in these two years. The opposition used to criticise his government as a suit boot ki sarkar. But through this budget, he has realised the importance of the masses in nation-building, and he seems to be working in the correct direction. I don’t really think he has left his stance but this budget has shown that focus has definitely shifted.”

It’s a view that finds resonance. “Being pro-poor does not mean it’s not pro-corporate dev­elopment. I think that if there is high public confidence in the government, it will lead to increased business confidence. Hence, I bel­ieve that it is important for government to balance between poor people and corporates. Also, corporates are looking for major reforms like GST, Bankruptcy law and Land Acquisition Bill which hopefully will come in the near fut­ure,” says Jayesh Bhansali, a chartered acc­ountant who’s currently a first year post-graduate student at IIM-B. Singhal also feels the BJP has resisted any kind of temptation to populism, focusing instead on fiscal consolidation and growth.

Says Rishabh Raj, who did a one-year stint in the public policy space under a Member of Parliament: “I wouldn’t say that this is a pro-poor approach. This is an approach where inv­1estments are made where it is required the most like strengthening the gram panchayats, the education system, the healthcare sector, the start-up ecosystem etc. These are just small steps in the right direction.” For India to work, he says, it needs an “amalgamation of the Gujarat model of industrial production, the Tamil Nadu model of public service delivery, Karnataka’s e-governance model and even the Bihar model with their recent achievements in the education sector.”