New Delhi: Against the backdrop of the Narendra Modi government facing the challenge of pulling the Indian economy out of an unprecedented recession while ensuring more resources to fight the worst pandemic in a century, finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Monday presented what was probably the toughest Budget yet for her government, in which she announced a jump in capital expenditure, more spending on infrastructure and doubling of the spending on health.
While Ms Sitharaman gave no particular relief for the middle class in terms of income-tax reliefs or exemptions, big sops were announced for the four poll-bound states — Tamil Nadu, West Bengal, Kerala and Assam.
In a bid to boost the Covid-19 pandemic-hit economy that plunged into the deepest recorded slump, the Centre also raised the cap on foreign investment in insurance for the next fiscal year.
The stock market gave a massive thumbs up to the Budget, and for the first time in Independent India’s history, the…