FM Sitharaman lays out roadmap to pursue 9 priorities for shining India opportunity

New Delhi, July 23 : Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Tuesday laid out nine priorities of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government, with a focus on employment, skilling, agriculture and manufacturing.

These are -- agriculture, employment, inclusive development, manufacturing and services, urban development, energy, infrastructure, innovation R&D and next-gen reforms.

The Budget provides Rs 2.66 lakh crore for rural development.

“In this budget, we focus on employment, skilling, MSMEs and the middle class. Agriculture research will be transformed to focus on raising productivity and climate resilient varieties," said FM Sitharaman while presenting her seventh Budget.

In a major push to employment generation, the Finance Minister announced three new schemes.

She said the PM Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana was extended by five years, benefiting more than 80 crore people in the country.

While presenting the Union Budget in the Lok Sabha, she said, "People of India have reposed their faith in the government led by PM Modi and re-elected it for a historic third term."