Anand Varadaraj, director, Bangalore International Short Film Festival
Investing in skill development for the cinema industry will be a wise decision. Such programmes can help individuals acquire the necessary skills and knowledge to work in the industry. This can lead to better job opportunities, higher salaries, and a more skilled workforce. Moreover, investing in skill development can help the cinema industry compete globally. The government could also consider starting more Film and Television Institutes of India (FTII) in different parts of the country, similar to the Indian Institutes of Management (IIM) and Indian Institutes of Technology (IIT). Starting more FTIIs can help aspiring filmmakers and technicians from different regions get access to quality education. This can help the industry grow and create more jobs for people across the country.
Anirudh Kheny, managing partner, Keen Mustard Ventures
The centre needs to classify the F&B industry as a legitimate industry and give them due recognition.They should also enable single-window clearance for all licences and clearly define the rules and laws in relation to the F&B industry.
Chetan Shivram, racer
I hope they consider reducing prohibitive tariffs on sports equipment being imported from abroad. For instance, for any part that we import for a racing car, we’d have to pay up to 180 per cent in import cess, which makes it prohibitively expensive for aspirants to take part in the sport. As motorsports gain prominence in the country, this measure could further help promote more racing talent to take various disciplines of motorsports.
Harish Bijoor, brand thinker
The world is a tough place. Global growth in GDP terms stands at 2.4 per cent. Likely to be down by 0.2 per cent over last year. In this situation, the developing economies of the world are slated to grow at 3.9 per cent. If India grows at 6.5 per cent in this situation, it will be a big thrill factor for all of us. I am looking for this thrill factor facilitation points in Budget ’24. I am looking for a budget that is correctionist. Women-centric. Green-centric. Sustainable tech-centric. And importantly, employment and employability-centric with a focus on skill development.
Mohammed Bazim S, student
As an individual about to step into the workforce soon, I hope there are initiatives and resources allocated to boost the country’s job sector. I also hope that there is priority given to align the country’s growth with recent technological developments in AI as well.
Ashish Singhal, co-founder, PeepalCo
Tax provisions for Virtual Digital Assets (VDA) were introduced two years ago. While the industry welcomed the definition and inclusion of VDAs in the Income Tax Act, certain provisions, such as the high Tax Deducted at Source (TDS) rate have led many Indian VDA users to move to non-compliant foreign exchanges to trade, putting themselves at risk of losing their investment and breaking the law. The government could consider reducing the TDS on VDAs, from 1 per cent to 0.01 per cent, allow carrying forward losses from sale of VDAs and treat income from VDAs on par with other capital assets.