What the market liked

Workers from the unorganised sector would be eligible for a pension post attaining 60 years of age on payment of Rs 100 per month. There are many other small and well-thought-out features in the budget, and it is clear the government has the elections at the back of the mind.

What the market liked and gave a thumbs up to was the fact that the maths of the increased expenditure of 1 lakh crore would come from higher divestment, dividend from RBI and tax buoyancy. At worst, there may be a shortfall in the tax buoyancy predicted, moving the deficit from 3.1 percent to, say, 3.5 percent. Considering it is the election budget, this is acceptable.