Union Budget 2020: Here’s what the Tech industry has to say post announcement
Here are the reactions of people from the tech industry post announcement of the new Union Budget 2020.
Today at the Union Budget 2020, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said that they will be encouraging the manufacturing of mobile phones, semiconductor packaging and electronic equipment. The government of India also took other actions in order to help the tech industry. here's what some of the leading brands have to say about the new announcement:
Post announcement, Mr Leon Yu, Regional Head, India & South Asia, Asus, said, "At Asus, we believe that the Union Budget 2020 announcement has covered several pressing issues faced by the economy and is going to bring growth opportunities. All eyes would be on the manufacturing sector, with the FM proposing a scheme to encourage mobile phones, semiconductor packaging, and electronic equipment. The new scheme, Nirvik, is also going to offer respite for exporters, promising to settle refunds for electricity and VAT previously levied. Furthermore, the provision to bring digital connectivity to all public institutions at Gram Panchayat and allocation of INR 6,000Cr to bring fibre to home through BharatNet linking 100,000 Gram Panchayats in FY21 are also welcomed moves.
He further added "With India’s rising aspirations reaching the rural locales, internet connectivity will pave the way for connected and smart consumerism. At Asus, we shall be pursuing ways to support the government in enriching India’s economy and traversing through rural India to ensure optimum growth and development. We also look forward to the policy on private players setting up data parks and shall be offering full support with our cutting-edge products and services."
Mr. Agendra Kumar, President, Esri India, said, “The budget has some very positive proposals for the GIS (Geographic Information System) market. There are several areas where the hon’ble Finance Minister has announced allocations of funds which will directly benefit from the use of GIS. It is heartening to see the allocation of Rs 11,500 Crores in 2020-21 for Jal Jeevan Scheme, this will certainly help in improvement in water resources and providing 24x7 water to households. Also Rs 12,300 allocated to Swatchh Bharat Mission for 2020-21 will help in roll out of initiatives for disposal and processing of solid waste and wastewater. These two schemes are very important for the country and GIS can help in the management of water resources, water distribution and in achieving the objectives of Swatchh Bharat mission."
He further added, "Mapping on land on both sides of railway tracks for generation of solar energy is driven by GIS and so are the other areas like expansion of sea ports, development of Inland Waterway and 100 more airports. It has been announced that the National Gas grid will be expanded from16200Kms to 27000 Kms. GIS is already been used in installation and management of Gas pipelines and distribution; the expansion of Gas grid will create more opportunities for the use of GIS and other geospatial technologies.”
Mr Yashash Agarwal, CEO, Gamezop, said, "FM's proposal of delaying tax collection on the exercise of ESOPs is a welcome move. The current structure looks to collect taxes too early causing employees to not exercise vested shares. Easing direct taxation for eligible startups will encourage businesses to chase the right metrics and not just growth at the by bleeding money. The definition of "eligible startups" must be broadened to bring more companies in this fold."
Mr. Anil Rai Gupta, CMD, Havells India, said, “The Union Budget 2020 has managed to address some key issues around infrastructure spending, electrification, affordable housing that present significant business opportunity. We particularly see this having a positive impact on the demand roadmap on the electrical and building segment players. Further the allocation of Rs 22,000 crore to power and renewable sector and 27,300 crores for development of industry and commence for year 2020-21 will accelerate growth opportunities for the electrical industry. In addition the income tax slab revisions and rural and farm sector measures will enhance consumer spending with more money in the hands of these consumers that is likely to drive greater demand for products.”
Rahul Sharma, MD-India, LogMeIn, said, “Budget 2020 looks very promising. We are particularly enthused about the FM’s announcement of seamless delivery of digital services as part of the next wave of digital revolution. AI, ML, Analytics, IoT, Robotics are making giant inroads in India, as was observed in the budget. The policy being introduced to build data centre parks throughout the country will help enhance the digital infrastructure to a significant extent. We are looking forward to the next phase of Digital India which will be a big growth driver for businesses and individuals alike.”
Mr. Rakesh Kharwal, Managing Director, India/South Asia & ASEAN, Cyberbit, "Great Opportunity to Setup Bridge Courses on Cybersecurity Skilling to Meet the 4 Million Global shortage of skilled cyber people under Skill India and Apprenticeship Courses in Financial Budget 2020: The government has highlighted the essence of skills sets for which various knowledge translation clusters for emerging technologies like Analytics, IoT, AI, and Cybersecurity will be setup. Now, since it has allocated Rs. 99,300 crores to the education sector and Rs. 3,000 crores for skill development itself, the government should look to adopt simulation technologies such as Cyber range to provide internships and better job opportunities for fresh engineers. The 150 higher educational institutes that the government is planning to set up could also latch on to this opportunity by parting world-class cybersecurity training as a part of their apprenticeship courses"
Mr.Aakrit Vaish, CEO, Haptik, said, ''As digitization and advanced technologies continue to gain momentum, we welcome the Budget 2020 announcements. Once again, the Finance Minister’s emphasis on machine learning, robotics, AI and IoT will help boost India’s digital journey. A significant proportion from the allocation of INR 3000cr for skill development should focus on these cutting-edge technologies. We are also delighted to witness proposals such as the linking of 100,000 Gram Panchayats through the enhancement of Bharat Net and setting up of data centre parks across the country. As national systems become more sophisticated and our workforce is equipped with the relevant skills, we will truly see the next wave of digital revolution, with greater scope for large-scale indigenous innovation."
Mr. Mike Chen, Managing Director, TCL India, said, "At TCL, we believe that the Finance Minister has announced an encouraging Union Budget 2020. Proposing the scheme to encourage the manufacturing of mobile phones, semiconductor packaging and electronic equipment is a welcomed move and we look forward to a complete policy and leveraging the same to kickstart the domestic manufacturing through our panel factory in Tirupati."
"Furthermore, painting a futuristic picture in this year’s budget announcement, the FM also acknowledged advanced technologies like IoT, AI, and analytics changing the world. At TCL, we are forever committed to advancing our ‘AI x IoT’ ecosystem in India and will continue to invest in cutting-edge technologies to offer the best services to our customers in India." - he added.
Abhishek Kumar, Regional Director, Onvu Learning, said, “The government has announced a number of measures for the education sector with a whopping Rs. 99,300 crore budget. With it, courses will go online soon and Top-100 NIRF Ranked Institutes start offering them. The government has also announced positive reforms including Asian-African 'Study in India' program, establishment of Police Academy and Forensic Science, and integration of medical institutes with dist. hospitals. Rs. 3000 crores have further been allocated for Skill Development. Perhaps, all of these reforms will go a long way by including video-analytics-based EdTech solutions to them as well."
Commenting on the Budget 2020, Mr. Abhsihek Kumar, Regional Director, Oncam said, "This year's budget includes a number of positive reforms for the surveillance and security agency. The government has announced the launch of Police Academy and Forensic Sciences, 5 more smart cities, 9,000 KMs of economic corridor, enhancement of tourist attractions, and improved business landscape for MSMEs alongside others. Security and Surveillance infrastructure is a core element of all of these reforms and will give a strong stimulus to the segment."
Ms. Suganthi Shivkumar, Managing Director, ASEAN, India & Korea at Qlik, said, "We appreciate the government’s decision in the 2020 Budget to dedicate the necessary funds and resources towards developing revolutionary and breakthrough technologies such as ML, robotics and AI to further the skills that will prepare us for the next wave and accelerate India’s journey towards becoming a digital giant. With data equated as the new oil, the government’s plan of building cutting-edge data parks across the country is equally important. With these parks, there will be a lot of data available but the key difference for businesses will be the ability to harness the data near real-time and obtain timely actionable insights from the data."
Mr. Akash Gupta, Founder and CEO - Zypp, said, "The Union Budget 2020 paints an affirmative picture for the future. We are glad that the Finance Minister has emphasised on improving the air quality, citing that the matter of clean air is a matter of concern in large cities that have a population of over 1 million. To the same end, we believe that EV-powered everyday commuting solutions offered by Zypp through Electric Scooters and Logistics solutions will play a crucial role in times to come."