Be it the Global Risk Report 2023 or the RBI’s own Financial Stability Report, everyone today acknowledges that the world is staring at a rather grim future, and India is not immune to the same. This is when the teeming millions of the country have hardly recovered from the pandemic. At such a time, analysing a budget speech that has no mention of the words recession, inflation or unemployment, is a frustrating yet revealing exercise.

In the next few pages, we have tried to put together the major thrust areas, points of emphasis and points that stood out in their absence in the Budget 2023. We have analysed thereby, the major trends in the landscape of economy and finance; the ramifications of the continued Capex push on infrastructure; the cracks in the idea of energy transition and handling of renewables; the weakening regulatory apparatus in the realm of finance; the absence of social and environmental safeguards when it comes to financial institutions; the widening inequality and so on.

While we do mention it, here you will not find a detailed analysis of the social sector and welfare spending. This is because that is an exercise that other organisations already do with diligence and we feel it’s better not to replicate.

Finally, even as avenues of public debate and critical analysis are being curtailed, the budget nonetheless is a document that requires extensive public scrutiny and deliberation. This report is part of the same endeavour. Because after all, it is our money.

Read the full report here: Budget Analysis 2023- Taking People for a Ride