Middle class in focus as Murmu, Modi speeches highlight 'aspirations'

India’s middle class figured in both President Droupadi Murmu and Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s speeches on Friday that were closely watched for hints on tax concessions ahead of the Union Budget.

In her address to the joint sitting of Parliament, Murmu underscored the contribution and aspirations of the middle-income groups, while Modi sought a “special blessing from Maa Lakshmi” for the poor and the middle class.

“The economic progress of a nation like India is defined by the aspirations of the middle class and the fulfillment of the aspirations. The bigger the dreams of the middle class are, the higher the nation soars,” Murmu said.

An entire section in the President’s address ahead of the first full budget of Modi 3.0 was dedicated to the middle class, with the government acknowledging the role of “tax papers in nation building”.

Nearly 72 per cent of the income taxpayers in the country have moved to the new tax regime, which the government has tried to make more attractive in successive budgets.

8th Pay Commission

The announcement of the constitution of the 8th Pay Commission by the Modi government before the Delhi Assembly election also found a mention in the President’s speech, apart from other schemes for the mid-income group like the Unified Pension Scheme and Jan Aushadhi Kendras that offer medicines at concessional rates.

The welfare measures for the poor, the President said, have created a “neo-middle class, a group that is infusing new energy into India’s growth journey”.

Modi, while speaking to reporters ahead of the Presidential address, also referred to the middle classes in particular. “Maa Lakshmi gives us success and wisdom, prosperity and well-being. I pray to Maa Lakshmi that every poor and middle-class community of the country should be blessed with the special blessings of Maa Lakshmi,” Modi said.