Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman presented the Union Budget 2022-23 in Lok Sabha on 1st Feb. The tech-related announcements includes, Digital rupee to be introduced by RBI in 2022-23; 5G spectrum auctions proposed for the year. Digital banking is identified as a focus area. E-passports with embedded chips to start rolling out from 2022-23. MSMEs to be linked to Udham e-shram portal. PLI schemes for wearables and hearables.
Kunal Nagarkatti, Chief Executive Officer, Clover Infotech
“The Government’s focus on creating a strong digital ecosystem to enhance banking and financial inclusion is a step in the right direction. Bringing all post office banks under the core banking ambit will enable seamlessness in digital payments and online transfer of funds and accelerate financial inclusion. The setting up of the Digital DESH e-portal for skilling initiatives is the need of the hour as it will bridge the gap between the supply and demand for digitally skilled and technically strong resources.”
Mr. Puneet Gupta, Managing Director & Vice President, NetApp India
“I am excited to see the government’s focus on the technology sector, as a whole. The incentives towards creating digital infrastructure, education, and skilling, spell out the intent on developing the country’s human capital. The emphasis of digitised skilling will help make our country’s youth future-ready. Additionally, the announcement on RBI introducing digital currency and the government providing infrastructure status to data centers, will help create a framework for emerging technologies making the digital India Inc better and stronger.”
Sunil Sharma, Managing Director – sales, Sophos India & SAARC
“The Union Budget 2022 presented by the Government of India is built on the foundation of introducing new technologies across sectors. From education to finance, logistics, and healthcare, the bedrock of change will be driven by tech. The Government has further proposed the introduction of the digital rupee. While this will definitely enhance efficiency and promote growth, increased digital penetration also brings with it additional cyber risks that one should be vary of. As a step towards mitigating cyberattacks, the Government plans to set up broadband in villages as well as the Digital DESH e-portal. This will help equip youth with the right skills, including cybersecurity skill sets, needed to operate safely in today’s tech-driven world.”
Dhruvil Sanghvi, Founder & Chief Executive Officer, LogiNext
“We welcome the move by the Government of India to boost logistics as a means towards ensuring economic growth. The proposal to set up a Unified Logistics Interface Platform is a welcome move. Leveraging technology to complement the development of infrastructure will help bring in better efficiency. Furthermore, with real-time tracking, and inventory management as a part of the platform, this will go a long way in bringing India at par with global supply chain networks. LogiNext has always been an advocate for digitisation of supply chains, and it is reassuring to see the Government work towards this. The decision taken to extend the tax incentives provided to startups till March 31, 2023 is a reflection of the Government’s commitment towards ease of doing business in India.”
Niraj Hutheesing, Founder and Managing Director, Cygnet Infotech.
“The advancement in enhanced transparency of payments is a huge stride forward for India in terms of fintech innovation. The proposed end-to-end online e-Bill system will enable increased productivity for industries that go completely paperless. This will prove to be extremely fruitful for digitization. Furthermore, the acknowledgement that India’s GST collection stands at Rs.1.4 lakh crore for the month of January 2022, exemplifies the growing need for digital taxation solutions that promise to take the Indian economy to the next level.”
Dr Rishi Bhatnagar, President, Aeris Communications
“FM has laid great emphasis on the EV ecosystem by announcing a battery swapping policy. This will promote and encourage the private sector to create innovative and sustainable business models, improving efficiency. I welcome the budget and am excited to assist the government in its electrification efforts. AI and IoT provide a clear image of the battery’s charge status. Remote monitoring via IoT can help verify that the station is correctly optimized. The most appealing aspect of the battery swapping infrastructure is that it does not necessitate any investment from local power distribution companies. This will aid in developing the necessary charging station ecosystem proving beneficial to the domestic EV market. As a company Aeris Communications has battery management and swapping solutions and working closely with EV OEMs and service providers”.
Mr. Deepak Mittal, Chief Executive Officer and Co-Founder, TO THE NEW
“The government’s unprecedented commitment to technology innovation and adoption in this union budget is highly encouraging. Breakthrough developments and futuristic technology such as the introduction of digital currency, the rollout of 5G within FY22-23, and e-passports using embedded chips are exciting for the country’s future. Among the measures announced, the budget highlights special incentives to startups and the launch of a progressive, new portal encouraging a digital ecosystem for skilling and upskilling. These initiatives will serve as a successful catalyst for the country’s economic growth.”
Ramanujam Komanduri, Country Manager, India, Pure Storage
“The Union Budget 2022 expectedly turned out to be a growth-oriented budget. The government is focused on reviving the economy through various programs across industries and especially MSMEs, which were hardest hit by the pandemic. The rollout of the Raising and Accelerating MSME Performance program will help address the challenges faced by the sector, through injection of liquidity and ease of compliance norms. The Credit Guarantee Trust for MSME will not only enable them to revive their businesses with additional funds but also enhance employment opportunities and enable job creation.”