Mr Arnav Mutneja, Founder, ZinQ Technologies
According to data, India has the potential to become a global manufacturing hub, with an annual contribution of $500 billion to the global economy by 2030. The economy is on the mend, with the government forecasting a V-shaped recovery. In terms of economic indicators, there are indications of rapid growth. Hence, we expect this year’s budget to be optimistic. With COVID continuing to make life difficult for the majority of the working class, this particular budget will likely be one of support for the industry. The audiovisual and information technology industries have proven to be a critical sector in keeping the economy afloat. We expect the government to give this industry a much-needed boost by incentivizing manufacturing and reducing reliance on imports. A new era of digital transformation in production units or factory floors is taking shape and government initiatives in this regard will pave the way for a manufacturing revolution in India. We must also keep in mind that, with technology evolving at a breakneck pace, e-waste has become a major issue in the country. The government’s support for making factories more energy efficient will be highly appreciated.
Mr Avinash Johri, Executive Director, MAXHUB
“The budget will be a pivotal event since it will set the tone for the ensuing fiscal year. This is the third budget in a row since the pandemic began and we still have a long way to go in terms of entirely eradicating the virus. What’s clear is that IT Communication & Collaboration Solutions like interactive displays and webcams used for video conferencing have played a key role in keeping life and business running smoothly even in remote and hybrid work environments. Digital devices have clearly become indispensable in a variety of fields, including education, corporates, healthcare and many more. As a result, the government should consider lowering taxes to make these products (read: essentials) more accessible and affordable for the general public. By emphasizing on making in India, OEMs and ODMs have played a critical role. They do, however, lack the necessary infrastructure to make such a big adjustment. The budget should, therefore, also include strong proposals to help India’s industrial and manufacturing sectors grow. Improvements to the existing setup are expected and we’ll be watching closely.”
Mr Anubhav Bajpai, Founder VouchPro
In the Union Budget, the government formulates various policies and strategically allocates funds to various sectors each year. Tech events have continued to evolve and grow in the aftermath of the pandemic. We anticipate that the government will take steps in this year’s budget to increase support for tech events in order to ensure that COVID protocols are met effectively. A policy that encourages technological innovation could boost the event industry’s growth and give rise to a variety of virtual and hybrid event solutions, such as the metaverse.
To encourage more product innovation in the event industry, we hope the government will lower direct taxes for startups. Because the virtual event space reduces carbon footprints, special tax incentives for expenses incurred to conduct events online could be offered. Aside from that, we anticipate the government encouraging R&D funds for global level innovations that will allow customers to be ahead of the curve in the event industry.
