THE PRESSURE POINTS

The Covid-19 pandemic added to the employment crisis, with some sectors seeing a near-total closure and big job losses. How has the budget addressed key issues?

TRAVEL & HOSPITALITY

The travel and hospitality sectors were hit the most by Covid-19. In March last year, Union tourism minister G. Kishan Reddy said that 21.5 million people involved in the tourism sector had lost their jobs due to the pandemic.

What the budget has done: The focus on tourism to identify 50 focus destinations is a boost; better infrastructure to aid lastmile connectivity.

MSMEs

There are an estimated 63 million micro-, smalland medium-scale enterprises in India, employing 111 million people. Thousands of them were forced to close down during the pandemic, per industry sources. The worst-hit were those in the contact-based sectors of retail, hospitality and travel and tourism.

What the budget has done: The revamped credit guarantee scheme through infusion of Rs 9,000 cr. in the corpus will lead to lowering the cost of credit.

TEXTILES

With high-street sales in the US and Europe declining, valueadded textile sales from India suffered, and so did jobs. India’s exports dropped 12 per cent year-on-year in Dec. 2022. With recession fears in the US and Europe, things may get bleaker.

What Budget has done: Allocation of Rs 900 crore for Amended Technology Upgradation Fund scheme for 2023-24; focus on enhancing the yield of extralong staple cotton to help increase the manufacturing of value-added garments.

AUTOMOTIVE

It was one of the worst-hit sectors during the pandemic. Production as well as sales came to a virtual halt in April 2020. The sector was later impacted by a semiconductor shortage, leading to slower production. Car sales have revived lately, but jobs remain vulnerable to economic ups and downs. An estimated 345,000 people lost their jobs in the automotive sector alone during the pandemic.

What the budget has done: Introduced higher capex outlay to spur growth and put more money into the hands of individuals; the old government vehicles scrappage plan will also help.

RETAIL

India’s $950-billion retail sector provided 40-60 million direct jobs. But it had to bear the brunt of the pandemic as consumers restricted purchases to essentials. Around 200,000 jobs were impacted in the sector.

What the budget has done: Put money into the hands of the middle class to help spending on durables and electronics, among other items.

REAL ESTATE AND CONSTRUCTION

The $120-billion real estate and construction sector employed 52 million people, of which 41 million are informal workers. The lockdowns triggered by the Covid-19 pandemic halted construction activities across the country, rendering millions of workers jobless.

What the budget has done: A higher outlay for the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana; Rs 10 lakh crore capex spend to spur construction activity.