Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday announced a National Manufacturing Mission to further boost the 'Make In India' initiative across industries, as the country emerges as a bright spot on the global manufacturing map.
Presenting the Union Budget 2025-26, the Finance Minister stated that the National Manufacturing Mission would support clean tech and build an ecosystem for the local production of solar cells, EV batteries, and high-voltage transmission equipment.
The credit guarantee cover for MSMEs will be increased to ₹10 crore from ₹5 crore, and the investment and turnover limits for the classification of all MSMEs will be increased by 2.5 and 2 times, respectively.
Customized credit cards with a ₹5 lakh limit will also be introduced for registered MSMEs.
She also announced Centres of Excellence in artificial intelligence (AI) for education, with a total outlay of ₹500 crore.
The Union Budget focuses on 10 broad areas, such as supporting MSMEs and promoting exports, agricultural growth and rural prosperity, manufacturing and financial inclusion, inclusive growth and development, with a special focus on the poor, youth, farmers, and women.
A scheme for the socio-economic upliftment of urban workers will also be set up. A Social Security Scheme for the welfare of online platform workers would also be introduced," said FM Sitharaman.
The government will also launch a focused product scheme for the footwear and leather sector, which is expected to create 22 lakh new jobs while generating significant exports.
The Budget Session of Parliament, which began on Friday, will be held in two phases. The first phase started on January 31 and will go into recess on February 13; the second phase begins on March 10 and will last until April 4.
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