While presenting the Union Budget 2023-24 in Parliament today, the Union Minister for Finance & Corporate Affairs, Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman said that since 2014 the government has ensured all citizens a better quality of life with dignity and the per capita income has more than doubled to Rs. 1.97 lakh. She further said that our economy has increased from being 10th to 5th largest in the world in these 9 years and improved as a well-governed and innovative country with a conducive environment for business in global indices. We have made significant progress in many Sustainable Development Goals, she added.
The Finance Minister said that the economy has become a lot more formalised as reflected in the EPFO membership more than doubling to 27 crore, and ₹7,400 crore digital payments of ₹126 lakh crore through UPI in 2022. She further said that the efficient implementation of many schemes, with universalisation of targeted benefits, has resulted in inclusive development, such as:
- 11.7 crore household toilets under Swachh Bharat Mission,
- 9.6 crore LPG connections under Ujjawala,
- 220 crore Covid vaccination of 102 crore persons,
- 47.8 crore PM Jan Dhan bank accounts,
- Insurance cover for 44.6 crore persons under PM Suraksha Bima and PM Jeevan Jyoti Yojana, and
- Cash transfer of ₹2.2 lakh crore to over 11.4 crore farmers under PM Kisan Samman Nidhi
