Budget 2015-16: Expectations

Government of India (GoI) will present its Budget for 2015-16 on February 28, 2015. After the new Government was sworn in during May 2014, it had a short period of six weeks before presenting the Revised Budget for 2014-15. With the benefit of an additional seven months of lead time, the Union Budget for 2015-16 is expected to bear a far stronger imprint of the new Government’s economic vision and road map for the next few years. Of particular significance would be its expenditure priorities and its medium term fiscal agenda, which would influence the direction and momentum of economic growth going ahead. Changes in taxation rates are, however, expected to be limited, in pursuance of the goal of maintaining a relatively stable policy regime, the anticipated shift to the goods and services tax (GST) and given the lack of fiscal space to cut rates to stimulate growth. With the new Government having emonstrated its intentions of undertaking reforms throughout the fiscal year, we do not expect a concentration of big bang announcements in the Budget.