Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will present the Economic Survey in Parliament before tabling the budget 2023 on February 1. The Budget 2023 will be the 9th (full fleged)Annual Financial Statement of the Narendra Modi government (from 2015 to 2023). To be precise, the Indian Ministry of Finance is all set to present the last full budget of Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led government's second term. For the unversed, Budget is also formally known as Annual Financial Statement and it is expected to provide relief to the middle class while setting India on course to becoming a $26 trillion economy by 2047. While the next budget most likely will be worth more than that of 2022 (Rs 39.45 lakh crore), before presenting the annual financial statement, the Union Finance Ministry tables Economic Survey in Parliament. Now, the question arises what is Economic Survey and how it impacts the coarse of the Budget, or at least how it impacts the Finance Ministry before the making of a budget?
What is Economic Survey?
The Economic Survey is a comprehensive document that provides a review of the Indian economy of the current financial year. The Economic Survey summarises the performance of India’s primary development projects in addition to forecasting the growth of GDP. The economic survey is used by the government to highlight important economic indicators and the areas that need to be focused on in the next fiscal year. According to the Indian Ministry of Finance quoted by the media, the Economy survey highlights economic trends in the country and subsequently facilitates the government in the mobilisation and allocation of resources or funds. The survey also takes into consideration the trends of expenditure in industrial production, agriculture, infrastructure, exports, imports, prices and foreign exchange reserves. Therefore, it is the Economic Survey which helps the Finance Ministry in the allocation of funds apart from its function to project the growth rate of India.
Economic Survey is formulated by the Economics Division of the Department of Economic Affairs under the guidance of the Chief Economic Advisor (CEA) ), V Anantha Nageswaran.
Budget 2023 to be presented in 2 sessions
Notably, the Budget 2023 will be presented in 2 different session or two parts. The session will begin with President Droupadi Murmu's customary address to the joint sitting of both Houses - Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha - in the Central Hall of Parliament. Following this, the Economic Survey will be tabled. The first part of the session is scheduled to be held from January 31 till February 13. Reports sugged that, the country’s defence sector is expected to get a big boost in fund allocation. According to data from the Indian Ministry of Defence reported by a newswire, the government has increased the procurement of indigenous defence products from 50% to 68% in recent years. Estimates suggest that the figure is expected to rise to 75 to 80% in FY 2023. Meanwhile, the second part of the session will begin on March 13 and will culminate on April 6. During this, demands from individual departments and ministries for grants will be up for discussion. Additionally, the discussions will also include Performance and Outcome Budgets, and Annual Reports by the respective ministries and departments.