New Delhi, Feb 1: The Union Budget 2018-19 emphasised evenly on infrastructure, agriculture and health, while rolling-out promotive measures for the Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises (MSMEs). The corporate sector also enjoyed the moment of delight as a long-pending demand was partially approved.

Budget highlights for MSMEs and Corporate sector:

- 76 percent of MUDRA loans will be given to women entrepreneurs under the MSMEs sector, the Finance Minister announced.

- Jaitley said nearly 32 per cent of the non-performing assets belong to the MSMEs sector. Once the clean-up operation is executed by the bank, following their recapitalisation, the lending towards the MSMEs will be accelerated.

- The corporate tax for companies filing I-T returns for an annual turnover of Rs 250 crore has been reduced from 30 per cent to 25 per cent. The move, Jaitley said, will benefit 99 percent of the MSMEs which file their returns. "This will also help in job creation as the MSMEs will be left with a higher amount of non-taxable disposable income," he added.

Budget highlights for infrastructure sector:

- Under the Bharat Mala project -- which aims to lay 35,000-km of roads connecting the remotest parts of India -- a total of Rs 5.35 lakh crore would be pumped in, to accelerate the project, Jaitley said.

- Under the Pradhan mantri Awas Yojana, a total of 37 lakh affordable homes will be built in the urban regions, along with 14 lakh pakka homes in rural parts.

- Under the Smart City Mission, 99 cities will be redeveloped at an outlay cost of Rs 2.04 lakh crore. 10 "iconic tourist destinations" will also be selected for central funding.

- The Rohtang Pass which connects Himachal Pradesh to Ladakh will also be redeveloped by the Ministry of Road Transport.

- The Airport Authority of India, which runs nearly 124 airports at present, will increase the number by "around 5 times" in the near future, Jaitley announced.

A massive Rs 1 trillion would also be invested to revamp the infrastructure of government schools across all districts of the nation.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Feb 01, 2018 02:14 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).