Union Budget has positive indicators on economic growth and development: Kiran Mazumdar Shaw

The Executive Chairperson of Biocon Limited, Kiran Mazumdar Shaw has welcomed the Union Budget tabled by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Tuesday. She said the budget builds further on the government’s pre-election, Interim Budget and has positive indicators on how it is looking at India’s economic growth and development. “The FM’s emphasis on job creation through skilling is a key underlying theme. Internships at large companies with Government and CSR backed stipends is the right approach to employability and jobs for the future,” Shaw said in a statement.

The budget has also focused on the start-up ecosystem and provided a fillip through the abolition of the ‘angel tax’ which is aimed at spurring investments in start-ups, and the emphasis on ‘ease of doing business’ will benefit Medium Small Micro Enterprises, she noted.

The government’s focus on research and innovation, especially agritech and industrial research, is a welcome move, the Biocon chief said.

The allocation of Rs 1 lakh crore financial pool will spur private sector-driven research and innovation at commercial scale, she opined. “We will need to read the details to see how this will be allocated to each sector. The removal of Customs duty on three cancer drugs will provide relief to cancer patients,” Shaw said. She, however, pointed out that the government should consider GST exemption for all cancer drugs to make cancer care more affordable for patients.