India will reduce its budget gap sharply in 2024-25 and focus on infrastructure and long-term reforms to drive growth, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said on Thursday as the government presented its last budget before a national election due by May. India's economy, the fastest growing among major nations, is going through profound change, Sitharaman said to the thumping of desks in parliament. “The next five years will be years of unprecedented development and golden moments to realise the dream of developed India by 2047," Sitharaman said. She said the next generation of reforms will be carried out in consultation with state governments. The government has simplified India's complicated tax structures, invested in new ports and roads but has struggled to liberalise land acquisition and labour laws.

Source: bd News24 February 01, 2024 06:25 UTC