Union Budget 2023: Did It Tick All The Boxes For Women This Year?

There is a marginal rise in the allocation for Women and Child Development (WCD) in the latest Union Budget 2023 that was held on February 1. The budget allocated to the nodal department of the government for the welfare of women and children is ₹25,448.75 crore in 2023-24, an increase of ₹267 crore from ₹25,172.28 crore allotted in 2022-23.

The proposal for the "Mahila Samman Saving Certificate" with a fixed interest rate of 7.5 percent for two years was the most important budget address announcement for women made by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman this year. The deposit may be made in a woman's or a girl child's name. The maximum deposit limit has been set at ₹2 lakh, and the programme will also allow for partial withdrawals.

"One-time new small saving under 'Mahila Samman Saving Patra'. The deposit facility for the women and girls will be for a period of two years with a rate of interest of 7.5 per cent," said Sitharaman.

Let us take a look at what the women were expecting from this year’s Union Budget.

Expectations

There were five sectors that women wanted Sitharaman to focus on in Budget 2023 including entrepreneurship, education, safety, healthcare, maternity and childcare, asset possession and credit availability, and pension schemes.

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Access to financing for women entrepreneurs is a significant issue that needs to be addressed. Along with tax breaks and incentives for startup funding, women were expecting improved access to loans and subsidised credit for women-owned enterprises.

In addition to the numerous government-run programs like Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao, and the National Rural Livelihood Mission, the budget was expected to include provisions for women to have improved access to healthcare, education, and safety.

Expanding the reach of initiatives like the Pradhan Mantri Matru Vandana Yojana would greatly benefit the pregnant women and new mothers. The women expected the Finance Minister to consider expanding access to reasonably priced daycare, which is one of the major obstacles for women finding stable employment.

Women expected the Finance Minister to reduce the economic gender pay gap by introducing greater fiscal incentives for women.

Union Budget 2023 Reality For Women

However, though the government did not significantly increase the aforementioned schemes or introduce any new ones in these sectors, the budget did introduce some schemes that could benefit the rural women.

Small farmers have received more than ₹2.25 lakh crore in financial aid through the PM-Kisan Samman Nidhi programme. According to the finance minister, the programme has provided ₹54,000 crore to about three crore women farmers.

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The Saksham Anganwadi and POSHAN 2.0 (Umbrella ICDS - Anganwadi Services, Poshan Abhiyan, Scheme for Adolescent Girls) programme received the greatest funding for the ministry, totalling ₹ 20,554.31 crore. Mission Shakti (Mission for Protection and Empowerment for Women) will receive an allocation of ₹3,143 crore in 2023–24, down from ₹3,184 crore in 2022–23, and Mission VATSALYA (Child Protection Services and Child Welfare Services) would receive an allocation of ₹1,472 crore.