Mr. FM Please Listen to IT

Mr. FM Please Listen to IT

We had seen some historical decision by Central Government in recent time which has affected all of us.

Demonetization has touched everyone’s life in some way. But when we talk about business, this has witnessed sharp decline in last quarter due to cash crunch as a result of desensitization. The government has succeeded in curbing black money and brought back more than 85% of old currency back in system. Also GST implementation is another game changing step for Indian economy. Once implemented, it will drastically change entire ecosystem for any size of businesses in India. Now as Government has decided to announce the Union Budget 2017-18 on 1st February, one month prior to the traditional routine, we all are much more hopeful to get a encouraging, people friendly and growth oriented budget.  DT spoke to some of the industry leaders to know their opinion and expectations from Finance Minister, Mr. Arun Jaitley, on the eve of budget announcement. Below are their views:

 “We are expecting favorable change in the Income Tax slabs”

Mr. Alok Dubey, CFO, Acer India

 The Union Budget for the year 2017-18 is likely to be unique as many prime factors like demonetization,  GST,  cashless economy measures, will play a key role this year. We are expecting favorable change in the  Income Tax  slabs and rates, as customer spending is still anticipated to decline for short term due to  demonetization. We also  expect the budget to focus on shaping the IT infrastructure and urge the  government to provide tax deductions on  purchase of PC for consumers as well providing easy short-term  loans for retailers for working capital  requirement. This is required to accompaniment India's emergent IT  sector and further help the industry make  improved technology more accessible to Indian market to fulfill  government’s push for a digital economy.

“Domestic Manufacturing Can Be Further Incentivized With Tax Breaks”

Mr. Gaurav Dureja, CEO, Ambrane India

 The Union Budget 2017-18 shall be historic in many ways. To start with, it will be presented on a much earlier date  of 1st February with the railway budget, incorporated with the union budget as for the first time. In terms of  expectations, though the Government’s intent is clear with the “Make in India” initiative, the domestic manufacturing  can be further incentivized with tax breaks and rationalizing of import duties specially on “other” category, which is  being grossly misinterpreted and source of confusion / corruption. The budget is also expected to promote cashless  transactions. We foresee easy & More funds must be made available to encourage entrepreneurs to overcome the  infra & working capital challenges.

“Major Focus Should Be On Digital Literacy”

Mr. Sudip De, Director, Doel International

 Since the entire country's current mantra is cashless economy, the major focus should be on digital literacy. While many  people are well versed with the gizmos, there is still major public who depend on others when it comes to digital  transactions. Efforts need to be put in order to edify people, especially in the rural areas of India. Few more aspects  which should be the area of concern and improved are better connectivity in the process of electronic payments and  access to newer technologies for rural population. Initiatives such as Digital India, Demonetization are good initiatives and  can fuel growth of our GDP at the rate of 8 to 8.5%.Additionally, Time line for GST roll out, import duty stabilization and  income tax slab ideation will be few more key expectations we are looking from this budget.

"The Law & Taxation Also needs to be Reformed"

 Mr. Rajshekhar Bhatt, Country Manager, ECS

 As the Government is working towards Digital India the 1st thing which is needed is to reduce red-tape-  isum&    the  bureaucratic wrangle created due to much unnecessary documentation & duplications of  paper & leg work.  And more  focus needs to be given in streamlining the entire process from start to end  of doing business in a  smooth manner. It  will be also be much beneficial if government agencies are  prudent in evaluating the  current market economy of India  vis-à-vis the world so that Indian businessmen  & entrepreneurs are not  hindered from developing and expanding not  only the existing business but also  endeavour into detailed  Research & Development for the purpose of designing and  creating new products  & services. The law & taxation also needs to be reformed in such a way that everyone who is doing  business has to pay only ONE tax every year or a month to only one department, because right now we  are burdened by multiple taxes which are so complex  & tiresome. 

"Government Should Majorly Focus On Improving IT Security & Digital Literacy"

Mr. Sanjay Joshi, Country Manager, Edimax India

 Keeping an important focus on digitization, the government has shown good intent in keeping up the momentum  of the  Make  in India and Digital India Mission. Initially additional benefits should be provided to those who are  opting for  cashless  transactions through credit cards, debit cards, bank services and mobile wallets are expected  to be part of  the Union Budget  2017-18.We hope that GST timeline, import duty stabilization, financial fiscal  adjustment and game  changing policies including  tax incentives will be address in this budget.Furthermore, I  feel  government should majorly  focus on improving the IT security,  digital literacy and network infrastructure  especially in rural sectors. Creating awareness about pros and cons of digitization  needs to be done in rural  public  as Internet and cybercrime are inseparable enemies.

 "Budget Needs to Focus on How Digital Can Become a Way of Life"

 Mr. Anil Valluri, President - NetApp India & SAARC. NetApp

 With the recent move of demonetization trying to shift our cash driven economy of 1.2 billion people and getting  them to  leap frog to the digital world is unprecedented in history. This is a significant leap towards becoming a  digital economy  and the budget now needs to focus on how digital can become entrenched and become a way of  life, while continuing to  focus on growth and providing adequate support to the various pillars of each program so  that the economy is on a  sustained growth path.

"We Expect Benefits to be Given to Building IT Network Infrastructure"

Mr. Sanjay Sehgal V.P. SMB & Telecom Business, TP-Link India

 With the Govt of India promoting Digital and cashless economy, we expect benefits to be given to investments done  in  building the IT network infrastructure.These can be provided by way of rebates or tax concessions on sale of  network  equipment used for internet connectivity. The IT penetration in the country is yet to reach satisfactory  levels and  providing tax benefits to consumers purchasing IT products, at regular intervals, will help to increase the  penetration  levels.

"Companies Also Expect Tax Benefits From Upcoming Union Budget"

Mr. Deepak Kabu, CEO, Ziox Mobiles

 The Chinese and foreign companies are assisted by their government in every aspect that helps them increase their  sales and demand in the market at a higher scale. However in India, the scenario is different to that of the foreign  market. It is extremely important to gain the same support from the Indian government in order to boost domestic  manufacturing at the components level. To maintain the demand of our brands in the market these factors are  supremely essential. Apart from this, companies also expect tax benefits from the upcoming Union Budget. The  year 2016 has been a very successful year for us and if we achieve these advantages from the government we  shall surely experience a positive growth year ahead.

"Govt should give Tax holidays on Phones less than Rs. 5000"

 Mr. Pankaj Anand, CEO, Jivi Mobiles

 The recent demonetization reform by the Government set the ground for a cashless economy. Mobile banking will become  imperative for everybody, it will definitely increase the user base. Especially low end smartphones will be on high demand  and to support the rural population &low income strata, the Govt should give tax holidays on phones less than Rs. 5000.  Similar support was offered by Chhattisgarh Govt in recent times.

"Government should Announce Dedicated Spending on ICT"

Mr. Chandan Kumar, Director – Marketing & Integrated Solutions, Huawei India

“Today India is at the center of world’s attention and thanks to the vision and initiatives undertaken by the present government. To further bolster the digital eco-system of the country, the Hon’ble Government should announce dedicated spending on ICT just like some other sectors like education, health and other infrastructure. A fixed percentage of the government budget spend on digital infrastructure will give multi fold returns to India’s GDP and help bridge the digital divide by bringing more and more Indians to the digital main stream. In the same light, we hope this year’s Budget will give the essential infrastructure status to the telecom sector and identify the sector as a strategic area. This will help in easy access of capital at reduced financing costs thus making it easier to roll out digital infrastructure”

"I Expect Reduction in Bureaucratic Formalities & Tedious Procedures for Manufacturers"

 Mr. Atul Rai, CEO and Co-founder, Staqu

 I am expecting a stronger push towards the entrepreneurial ecosystem from the budget this year. By extending the  tax-free regiment to 5 years and taxing ESOP (Employee Stock Ownership) at the times of sale, would really give a  boost to the startup environment today. Since RnD happens to be a crucial part of our operations I expect  government should also consider tax relaxation to those startups which are collaborating with academic institutions  for RnD related purposes.  I expect a reduction in the bureaucratic formalities and tedious procedures for  manufacturers. The government should consider streamlining the current processes, in order to let OEMs focus on  further disrupting the status quo and bringing newer innovation in the mainstream foray!

"A Key Expectation is Large-Scale Job Creation Driven by Incentives"

 Mr. Anoop Pai Dhungat, Chairman &MD, Galaxy Office Automation Pvt. Ltd.

 There are several key expectations from Budget 2017, pitted to be important and markedly different from the past  few years. A key expectation is large-scale job creation driven by incentives to domestic industries, and allocating  more funds to mega projects in government and public sectors.  We are also expecting a transition towards digital  economy through incentives and tax breaks; likewise, some measures to address the slowdown caused due to  demonetization. This could be in form of incentives to agriculture and FMCG sectors. That apart, implementation of  GST could address the challenges these sectors have been facing lately. Unfortunately, the converse also holds true  and thus, we are having lots of positive hopes on this budget.

"Government Should Abolish Service Tax on Internet-Related Services"

 Mr. Satya Prabhakar – Founder & CEO, Sulekha 

 To further the cause of digitization and boosting the digital ecosystem, the government should abolish service tax on  Internet-  related services such as broadband services, internet advertising, and food delivery, so on. This will encourage  the adoption of  the same and also allow for payments to be become digital.

“Govt.Should Balance Out Businesses of E-Commerce and Physical Retail Industry”

 Mr.Gopal Pansari,Director at Savera Digital India.

 For FY17-18 we hope that Government should balance out the Businesses of the fast growing e-  commerce Industry and physical retail industry by giving some tax incentives and government must  implement GST to boost economic growth which will actually benefit the manufacturing industry and  the  export segments.The government will be benefited by promoting R&D benefits for the  organizations to  innovate and come up with newer and better technologies. This demonstrates  concrete actions to revive  investment, increase growth and generate employment which will impact  the industry. Support for Digital  India initiatives and access to better network connectivity in rural  areas will boost the economic and  domestic spending of the country as more and more citizens will  be able to access e-commerce sites.  This will provide much needed growth to the e-commerce  sector of our nation. Further, inspired from the  Digital India concept of the Government and by  keeping eyes on the Technology Driven Nation, we have  also changed our name from Savera  Marketing Agency to Savera Digital India.

"We Expect Government to Continue its Focus on Building Better Infrastructure & Job Creation"

 Mr. Rajiv Bhalla, Managing Director, Barco India

 Ahead of the union budget, we expect the government to come up with ample budgetary provision for turning our  cities into truly world-class Smart Cities. India’s Smart Cities Mission is the government’s highest-profile program,  providing assistance to 100 cities for infrastructure modernization Metropolitan cities with million-plus populations  are India’s engines of growth. As per a McKinsey report, about 77 percent of India’s economic growth from 2012  to 2025 will come from 49 clusters of districts with metropolitan cities at their nucleus. We expect the government  to continue its focus on building better infrastructure and services, creating secure, safe and smart cities which will  be magnets for investment and job creation.
 
"Government Should Focus Only on Health & Primary Education"
 

 Mr. M P Vijay Kumar, CFO, Sify Technologies

 The government should opt for vertical-specific investments to increase employment in industry verticals like  heath, education, and manufacturing. Ideally, the Government should focus only on health and primary  education. Corporate tax rate should be made 25% and all exemptions must be rationalized/removed so  that  there is uniformity to the taxation base and predictability in revenue collections. In order to jumpstart  adoption,  this could include the withdrawal of ICDS (Income computation and disclosure standards). It  should be  mandatory for individuals to file tax return but it can also be incentivized by increasing the  minimum tax slab to  Rs.10 lacks. Ideally, tax incentives should be exclusive of standard insurance policies to  encouraging savings.  The government will find a lot of takers if it sticks to a timeframe for refund of all tax  dues and takes a BG for  half of the amount.

"We Need to Invest in Training & Upskilling our Workforce"


Dr. Rishi Bhatnagar, Chairman, IET-IoT India Panel and President, Aeris Communications, India

Almost 20 billion IoT-enabled devices will go online over the next half a decade and this represents an amazing  opportunity for us. So many devices will have to have a IoT-skilled workforce to manage them and we need to invest  in training and upskilling our workforce to ensure we capitalize on this opportunity. Adequate skilling capacity needs to  be created for this by attracting investments from within the country and outside. I hope that our government takes a  step in this direction through this budget.

"We are Expecting Government to Dole out New Incentives to Indian Manufacturers"

Mr. Rajesh Doshi, Director, Zebronics India Pvt. Ltd.

We are expecting the government to dole out new incentives to the Indian Manufacturers in the 2017-18 budgets, giving further fillip to Make In India, the pet project of our Prime Minister. As the IT industry is on a decline and the government shifts gears and focuses on other growth drivers, we anticipate that the government provides us more support, which shall help in sustaining the business.  

"Budget Should Continue to Focus On ‘Ease of Doing Business"

Mr. Shekar Sanyal, Director and Country Head, the IET.

“The Union Budget 2016 focused more on skill development and improving our infrastructural capabilities. As India advances on its path to gain technological supremacy, Internet of Things, Artificial Intelligence and Big Data will be the key drivers to economic growth. It is now an opportune time to up skill our brain pool with the right skill sets to ensure they are increasingly kept relevant to the growing needs of the industry. With a projection of estimated 20 billion connected devices by 2020, It is necessary that India channelizes all its resources to ensure we are ready for this rapid technological sprint. The 2017 budget should continue to focus on ‘ease of doing business’ and its thrust on the development of the technological infrastructure.The 2017 Budget needs to emphasize on improving the quality of higher education infrastructure and focus on providing more practical learning opportunities to the students in order to make them industry ready. The Government also needs to roll out initiatives to boost e-learning.

"We Need to Focus on Digital Money to Stay Digital"

Mr. Madhur Deora, Chief Financial Officer, Paytm
The Union Budget 2017 is widely expected to encourage digital payments and universal access to financial services. It’s important for our country to create a robust infrastructure to offer high-speed, reliable Internet access to one and all. Improving access to digital services with tax rebates on the production of affordable smartphones and offering subsidized data will also go a long way in democratizing India’s payments sector. We need to focus on digital money to stay digital, by strongly encouraging digital payments of all forms, as compared to ATM machines. Waiving off transaction fees for low-ticket purchases and increased access to credit would also help bring millions of unbanked and under-banked individuals into the folds of the mainstream economy.”

"It’s Time for Government to Give Boost to Manufacturing Sectors"

Mr. Sanjeev Bhatia, CEO of Zopo India and Managing Director of Adcom.

“We expect the government to look into the direct / indirect taxation slabs. We propose that the tax free slab should be raised from current level to about 5 lakhs and there should be a tax rate cut for personal and corporate taxes. Also, as GST is on the move, we are looking forward to its implementation for smooth and simplified taxation procedures which will boost manufacturing industry and will benefit all”.With reference to government’s vision of Digital India, we believe that technology will rule and provide ample amount of benefits to common man. Today, smart phones are playing a key role in the economy of any country. People are getting more facilities and options with the help of smart phones. It’s time for government to give a boost to the manufacturing sectors.

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