FUTURE-FOCUSED REFORMS

A clear 1-2 per cent TDS category for manpower and staffing services removes long-standing ambiguity, improves cash flows and recognises staffing as a mainstream contracting model

- Column by Lohit Bhatia

FOR the first time in several years, we have a Union Budget that prioritises the improvement of long-term capabilities in education, skill enhancement, and job creation, rather than implementing new blanket subsidies. This signifies a significant shift in viewpoint-the government is moving away from merely expanding benefits to empowering individuals to boost their own income.

The creation of a permanent “education to employment” standing committee in the services sector acknowledges that India’s growth engine is increasingly talent and services-led, not merely asset-led. Additionally, the significant boost in funding for the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship, with revised estimates increasing from around 2,700 crores to nearly 9,800 crores under the Pradhan Mantri Viksit Bharat programme, emphasises that skills and livelihoods are now central to the narrative of development, rather than being secondary initiatives.