Key Takeaways from Economic Survey 2023

Key Takeaways from Economic Survey 2023

News: This is in continuation to yesterday’s article.

Key Takeaways:

Health
 India’s budgeted expenditure on the health sector reached 2.1% of the GDP in the financial year 2023 (Budget estimates) and 2.2% in FY 2022 (revised estimates).
 The National Health Policy 2017 as well as the 15th Finance Commission recommended 2.5% by 2025.
 An increase in the share of government health expenditure (in comparison to the total health expenditure) is observed due to expenditure incurred on the national Covid-19 vaccination program, Aatmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyaan, Intensified Mission Indradhanush (MI) program. There is decline in out of pocket expenditure.
 Ayushman Bharat Jan Arogya Yojana (AB-JAY) is however falling short of the target as less than 50% of the originally targeted 50 crore beneficiaries under the scheme.

Education
 As a share of total GDP, the budgetary allocation for education saw only a minimal gain of 0.1 percentage points, from 2.8% to 2.9% during the same seven-year period.
 A decline in the government share of expenditure, while the expenditure on social services increased.

Agriculture
 The Indian agriculture sector has been growing at an average annual growth rate of 4.6% during the last six years. In recent years, India has also rapidly emerged as the net exporter of agricultural products (an alltime high of $50.2 billion during 2021-22)
 Strong growth in agriculture has led to year on year demand for MGNREGS. Government intervention through PM Kisan, Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bimal Yojana and KCC has improved prospects.

Digital Infrastructure
 In 2022, over a billion people have unique digital ID documents, more than 80% have bank accounts, and over 600 cr digital payment transactions have been completed on a monthly basis. Digital infra can add 60- 100 bps to GDP growth.

Start-ups
 Despite layoffs, the number of direct jobs created by Startups rose 36 percent to around 2.7 lakh last year
 The number of start-ups recognized by the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) has increased from 452 in 2016 to 84,012 in 2022.

Industry
 The industry not only accounts for 31% of the GDP but also has a significant contribution in generating employment for up to 12.1 crore people in the financial year 2023, directly or indirectly.

Service sector
 India has been placed among the top 10 service-exporting countries in the year 2021 and commercial services export has increased from 3% in 2015 to 4% in 2021.
 Non-contact intensive services like ICT, financial, professional, and business services have contributed significantly to the economy.

Electronics
 India has become the second-largest mobile phone manufacturer globally and is on course to reach $300 Billion worth of electronics manufacturing by 2026.