Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, while presenting Union Budget 2025, announced a massive relief for salaried employee as she announce that there would be no income tax payable for those earning upto Rs 12 lakh. But that’s not it, she also announced customs rate cuts on certain items including mobile phones, chargers and some cancer drugs.
A reduction in customs duties on gold and silver to 6 per cent and that of platinum to 6.4 per cent has also been announced. The Finance Minister had also proposed to remove basic customs duty (BCD) on ferronickel and blister copper.
After the presentation of Union Budget 2025, here’s what gets cheaper and what gets costlier:
WHAT’S CHEAPER?
Cancer, chronic diseases medicines: 36 life-saving drugs fully exempted from basic custom duties.
Electronic goods: The FM announced reduction of BCD (basic customs duty) to 5 per cent for open cells and other components.
Cobalt powder and waste, scrap of lithium-ion battery, lead, Zinc and 12 more critical minerals exempted from Basic Customs Duty (BCD).
EVs: 35 additional goods for EV battery manufacturing, and 28 additional goods for mobile phone battery manufacturing to be added to list of exempted capital goods
Leather jacket, shoes, belt, purse
Frozen Fish Paste (Surimi): Customs duty on Frozen Fish Paste (Surimi) to be reduced from 30% to 5% for manufacture and export of its analogue products.
WHAT’S COSTLIER?
Flat Panel Displays: BCD increased from 10% to 20%, impacting TVs and mobile phones.
Social Welfare Surcharge: Exemption removed on 82 tariff lines currently under cess.
UNION BUDGET 2025
While presenting her eighth consecutive Budget, she outlined that the Union Budget 2025 will prioritise the poor (garib), youth, farmers (annadata), and women (nari). She emphasised that the next five years offer a unique opportunity to achieve “sabka vikas,” or the balanced growth of all regions.
The Finance Minister added, “In this Budget, the proposed development measures span 10 broad areas, focussing on the poor, youth, farmers and women.”
The Finance Minister further highlighted that the budget’s proposed development measures would focus on 10 key areas, specifically targeting these critical sectors—ensuring inclusive growth and welfare for the nation’s citizens.
This is the second full budget of the Modi 3.0 government, which returned to power at the Centre in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.