Budget 2025 Expectations | Govt needs to help companies access funds to gain clean tech solutions, says Anu Chaudhary

There are high hopes for the Union Budget FY 2025-26 documents on ESG, and industrialists are keeping their fingers crossed regarding their expectations from the government's most important financial document of the year.

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will present the 8th consecutive Union Budget on February 1, 2025. Reports suggest that the government is mulling over cutting income tax for those who are earning up to Rs 15 lakh a year in February's budget, in turn providing relief to the middle class.

Various experts from different sectors have put forth their expectations from the Budget for their industry.

Speaking on expectations over ESG, Anu Chaudhary, Partner and Global Head of ESG Consulting at Uniqus Consultech, said, "As India launches its Carbon Credit Trading Scheme (CCTS) and embarks on its Net Zero Journey, the focus will be on access to clean and green technologies across sectors. Industries covered under CCTS are also subject to international regulations like CBAM, which attract carbon taxes on exports."

"One of the objectives of CCTS is to offset such taxes. Decarbonizing the sectors under CCTS would require access to clean technologies at costs that can help them stay globally competitive. The Union budget needs to prioritize establishing mechanisms to access global funds for technology innovation and promote the development of affordable and scalable clean tech solutions by domestic MSMEs," she said.

"We believe that providing financial incentives to companies, such as improved Performance Linked Incentives (PLI) and promoting research and development in cleaner technologies, will be vital to meeting India’s target of achieving net-zero emissions by 2070,” she added.

Union Budget 2025 | Nirmala Sitharaman, who continues to be Finance Minister, will present her record 8th Union Budget this time. While inflation has burnt a hole in the pockets of 'aam janata', reports suggest there might be a tax relief for those making up to Rs 15 lakh per year. Track the latest coverage, live news, in-depth opinions, and analysis only on Deccan Herald. Also follow us on WhatsApp, LinkedIn, X, Facebook, YouTube, and Instagram.