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(Automotive and Tourism)Mr Greg Moran, CEO and CoFounder of Zoomcar: "It's fascinating to see that our Hon'ble Finance Minister has addressed some major concerns about India's progress towards clean energy in the Union Budget 2023. The decision to extend the exemption to capital goods imports for the manufacture of lithium-ion cells for batteries used in electric vehicles is a much-needed boost to green mobility and EV adoption in the country.

The government has made a significant effort to promote tourism, especially in the post-covid era, by proposing the creation of an app to improve the tourist experience. We think that the tourism sector has a lot of untapped potentials. Such programmes, in our opinion, can advance both green travel and tourism."

(AgTech)Mr Dhruv Sawhney, COO and Business Head at nurture.farm: "The announcements around the setting up of agriculture accelerator fund, making digital infrastructure for agriculture, computerization of primary agricultural credit societies, setting up of the AI centres etc are measures towards supporting technology adoption and promoting digitization of agriculture at scale. Empowerment of rural women by lending infrastructure, capital, knowledge, accessibility, supply chain, and marketing support to 81 lac self-groups via the formation of farmer producer enterprise ecosystem is set to improve rural employment, rural income, purchasing power, catalysing their ability to serve large customers and meet export requirements. 

The role of Agritech companies to drive innovations in the insurance space, catalyze rural livelihoods, and move the transition towards sustainable food has been well called out, however support measures to scale these programs can be created. There could have been more measures to devise incentives and investments to specifically educate, adopt practices that solve for climate change in agriculture."

(Carbon credits)Mr Shailendra Singh Rao, MD and Founder of Creduce: “This budget is a landmark first step towards Narendra Modi’s government’s commitment towards Net Zero 2070. This was a long time coming. And it has come with a bang. The outlay is futuristic, decisive and milestone driven. The budget places a substantial emphasis on green growth and sustainability”. 

The government has earmarked Rs 35,000 core in priority capital investment towards energy transition and achieving India's goal of net zero carbon emission by 2070.

Sitharaman also announced an additional Rs 19,700 crore towards the government's Green Hydrogen Mission to lower carbon intensity and reduce fossil fuel use. She also announced a five million tonne target for green hydrogen production by 2030. These funds will be used to promote renewable energy sources such as solar, wind, and bioenergy, in addition to reforestation and wildlife conservation.

The government has also announced the launch of a national recycling policy to promote waste management and reduce the country's carbon footprint. The budget also highlights the government's commitment to electric mobility, with a proposal to launch a scheme to provide electric vehicles and charging infrastructure in the country. This would again prove to be a boon for entrepreneurs looking at investing into charging pods. 

In addition to these initiatives, the budget also provides tax incentives for companies engaged in environmental-friendly activities, such as renewable energy production and water conservation. This would prove to be good boost for the entire sector and involve an wholesome approach and involvement. The government has also allocated funds for the development of green infrastructure, including the creation of green energy corridors, smart cities, and coastal economic zones.

These incentives will not only augur well for the environment also those dwelling around them. This would create a lot of job opportunities which would translate into wealthy nature.”

(EdTech)Ms Divya Jain, Co-founder, Seekho: The Union Budget 2023 encourages and helps our youth realise the importance of Upskilling by establishing skill India international centres across states. Even establishing a national digital library for children will be helpful to build a solid infrastructure.

Giving priority to AI in various sectors, including education, particularly through the establishment of Centres of Excellence in Top Educational Institutions, has provided a much-needed boost to the overall education ecosystem for all. The finance minister announced the recruitment of 38,000 teachers for Eklavya Model and Residential Schools, which will provide opportunities for tribal students, in this year's union budget, providing a ray of hope for the education sector.

(Healthcare)Mr Amrit Singh, Co-founder and CRO at Loop: “The budget has focused on improving India’s R&D capability in pharma and medical devices while increasing vocational training on nursing. In their approach to sickle cell anaemia eradication they have shown a preventive healthcare framework of health education, proactive testing and treatment that should be the cornerstone of all healthcare in India, which is currently only focused on last-mile sick care. We hope future Budgets will cater to preventive care”

Mr Ashwin Chawwla, Founder & Managing Director, Escrowpay: The Government of India has proposed the use of Aadhaar-based Unique Identity Number (UID/UAN) as a common identifier for all digital systems of specified government agencies. This would enable the government to identify individuals across different agencies without having to maintain separate records for each agency. PAN will be the sole identifier and would help in stopping multiple submissions for MSMEs.

The UID/UAN will be used to securely store and access personal information of citizens, and to facilitate access to government services. Additionally, it will also enable the government to better track the usage of public services, improve public service delivery, and reduce fraud and corruption.

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