“I present the Budget for 2023-24. This is the first Budget in Amrit Kaal,” announced the Union Finance Minister at the beginning of the 2023 budget speech on Wednesday, February 1. ‘Amrit Kaal’ was the prominent theme of the budget presented and the FM used the word seven times in her speech. So what is this ‘Amrit Kaal’ and how is it featured in the budget speech presented by Nirmala Sitharaman?
Amrit Kaal literally means the time of nectar. In practice, it means an auspicious time to start a new task, a new venture or any activity. It is believed that starting a task at ‘Amrit Kaal’ will yield favourable results. Prime Minister Narendra Modi had spoken about ‘Amrit Kaal’ during his Independence Day speech in 2021. Amrit Kaal is similar to Achche Din, the only difference is one is about time, and another about days.
In this year’s budget, Sitharaman has spelt out the government’s “vision for Amrit Kaal – an empowered and inclusive economy.” She added that the vision includes “technology-driven and knowledge-based economy with strong public finances, and a robust financial sector”.
“To service these focus areas in our journey to India@100, we believe that the following four opportunities can be transformative during Amrit Kaal–economic empowerment of women, PM Vishwakarma Kaushal Samman (PM VIKAS), tourism and green growth,” the Finance Minister said.
She also added that the budget adopts seven priorities which complement each other and “act as the ‘Saptarishi’ guiding us through the Amrit Kaal.”