V. Nagappan, president of the Hindustan Chamber of Commerce, said the proposal to extend the revamped credit guarantee scheme for the micro, small and medium enterprises and relief to the pandemic-affected units in the Union Budget 2023-24 is in the right direction. “Reduction of 1% interest for the MSMEs will further boost their growth and also allowing the payment to the MSMEs as “allowable expenses” only when actual payment made by the corporates is a welcome step as it will enable the big companies to honour their commitments,” Mr. Nagappan added.

T.R. Kesavan, president of the Madras Chamber of Commerce and Industry, said, “On the whole, we feel that the budget is growth- oriented without compromising on fiscal responsibility or sustainability.” The Chamber always bats for ease of doing business. Decriminalization of more than 3,400 legal provisions, adopting PAN as common identifier for all digital systems and unified filing process are the right measures, he pointed out.

Chozha Naachiar Rajasekar, president of The Tamil Chamber of Commerce, pointed out that there are no announcements on specific projects for Tamil Nadu. C.K. Ranganathan, past chairman, CII Southern Region, said, “I don’t see anything specific to Tamil Nadu, but the announcements pertaining to start-ups, MSMEs, Unity Mall and Skill Development will benefit us like other States.”

Sasikumar Gendham, Managing Director, Salcomp India, “This budget provides a clear vision towards increasing investments into infrastructure, youth skill development / employment, green growth. While the status quo has been maintained for electronics sector, a small relief being provided for certain parts of mobile phones and television, is a welcome step.” V. N. Shiva Shankar, vice president, SICCI, said, “Being the first in the Amrit Kaal, it has signalled positive for several new-age industries. “It is really welcome to note that the government continues to place a lot of importance to Green Growth – which is critical to achieve self reliance,” Mr. Shankar said.

V.L.Indira Dutt, President of Andhra Chamber of Commerce, said that thrust given for artificial intelligence, spectrum 5G labs would create more opportunity globally for techno professionals. C A Amrith Lal, Convenor, FICCI Tamil Nadu Finance and Taxation Panel, said the budget has taken care of the hardworking and middle class in the form of tax reliefs to them both under the old and new tax regimes.

S. Vaidhyasubramaniam, Vice-Chancellor, SASTRA Deemed University, said that as an academic, this year’s report card deserves a distinction for its digital focus on both next-gen technologies at the top and skilling at the bottom. There is a clear sign of inclusivity in human capacity building, he said.

EOM