Budget 2023: What women want from FM Nirmala Sitharaman

Jaskiran Kapoor (43), a freelance writer and media consultant from Chandigarh, scans the shelves of a supermarket as she buys products of everyday needs.

“My expectations from the budget are similar to what I had last year and all years before that. There is no parity in the world when it comes to women. Almost 30 years of our lives are devoted to our menstrual cycles but the costs of sanitary napkins are shooting through the roof,” she says.

Women form 48 percent of the country’s population, yet, according to a 2019 survey conducted by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), only about 14 percent of all micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) in India are majorly owned by women and only 5.9 percent of all startups are led solely by women.

Jaskiran echoes the voices of many when she speaks about higher prices on hygiene products for women.

While the goods and services tax (GST) from sanitary napkins had been removed after much uproar and petitions in various courts, a press release by the Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) states that GST in the 12-18 percent slab continues to be levied on all its raw materials.

All other hygiene products, such as shampoo, intimate wash, body wash, shaving cream etc., also continue to attract GST.

“When you levy tax on products of daily use for women and make them more expensive, you are denying them to people who cannot afford them. Why should women shell out so much money per month for things that should be made available free of cost,” questions Jaskiran.

She also demands that gender-based pricing or ‘pink tax’, which is the unsaid, higher amount of money women pay for products, particularly marketed for them, is something the government should look into.

“A razor for men is priced at least 50 percent less than that for women. It is the same for any other hygiene product. Being a woman herself, we expect the finance minister to look into this,” adds Jaskiran.

Issues surrounding tax-saving investments

The income-tax levied remains almost gender-neutral, with only some benefits to women. They can reduce their tax liabilities, to some extent, by suitable investments, but most of these investments are long-term in nature.

“Some investments offer tax deductions but they have long lock-in periods. Schemes, such as PPFs and NPS and women-centric schemes like Sukanya Samriddhi Yojana (SSY), have lock-in periods that run as long as 15 years, at least 3 years and 21 years respectively. Many times, our expenditure grows and we are unable to invest in such schemes, thus defeating the purpose of those benefits. Moreover, investment in schemes such as SSY puts added burden as money is not available when required,” says Astha Gupta (27), legal counsel at a Bengaluru-based firm.

A steep fall in deposit interest rates has further disincentivised people from investing. “On an average, fixed deposits are now offering people 6 percent interest rate. It was 5 percent in early 2022. This used to be above 8 percent before the pandemic. Even if we invest in FDs, its value is depreciating due to high levels of inflation. Only good interest rates would incentivise savings. Financial security is essential for empowerment and independence,” adds Astha.

Ease of doing business for women entrepreneurs

The rate of female labour force participation, which is the share of women over 15 years who are economically active, still hovers below 20 percent. Despite that, the government has taken no pain to promote women-centric businesses, says Shagun Bawa (43), founder of a wedding décor firm- Pataaree.

“For women entrepreneurs, the ease of doing business in MSMEs must be looked into. Dedicated credit support for women promoters and those who are still recuperating from COVID needs a special COVID incentive for faster recovery,” she says.

MSMEs consume a large portion of the country’s imports, especially raw materials. The sector is also a driving force behind India's export industry, contributing nearly 50 percent in 2022 alone.

“The government can reduce tariffs and duties on imports and exports to make them more affordable for MSMEs to participate in international trade. This can be achieved by providing exemptions to MSMEs, reducing tariffs for certain products, or implementing duty drawback schemes to refund some of the duty paid on imported goods. They can also partner with financial institutions, incentivizing them to provide MSMEs with financing at affordable rates, or by setting up a dedicated fund to finance the trade,” the entrepreneur adds.

Inflation: Pinch or stab?

Even though inflation numbers have eased, with WPI coming down to 4.95 percent this month, several years of rising inflation has emerged as a sore point.

“Inflation has hovered above the tolerance limit of 6 percent for most of 2022 and it should be a main focus of the upcoming budget. The rise in prices has affected our purchasing power. This can be seen in our distorted monthly budgets with an increase in cost of everyday items. High fuel prices are further adding to it,” says Harjot Gupta (29), a Punjab-based businesswoman.

“The cost of living alone has risen high with soaring rents. We have had to reprioritise our spending method to cope with rising inflation. While I used to spend somewhere between Rs 3,000 and Rs 5,000 on groceries for myself, the cost has now risen by at least 50 percent and I end up spending over Rs 10,000 per month. Auto and cab fares have become costlier. Even metro fares have risen. All this, while I continue to earn the same amount,” says Astha, who lives alone at a rented flat.

Other than inflation driving up prices of basic commodities, GST on pre-packaged products of daily use, such as curd, rice, flour, pulses, and oats, has further added to a common man’s misery.

“A number of tax reforms are needed to ease the burden on the middle class,” says Harjot.

As women grow in their roles across the country and take steps towards becoming financially literate, they demand a host of changes and women- centric reforms from the upcoming budget.

“I don’t know about Smart India or Digital India, but India needs to focus upon women who form half of their country’s population,” says Jaskiran.