Now there's an app for the Union Budget too

We all know, there's an app for every problem in the world. 

At the customary 'halwa' ceremony that commences the "final stage" of the Budget on Saturday, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman launched the Union Budget Mobile App. 

The app, which is bilingual (English and Hindi), will be available on both Android and iOS platforms.

Calling it the "simplest form of digital convenience", FM Sitharaman said, "The mobile app facilitates complete access to 14 Union Budget documents, including the Annual Financial Statement (commonly known as Budget), Demand for Grants (DG), Finance Bill, etc., as prescribed by the Constitution."

Developed by the National Informatics Centre (NIC) under the guidance of the Department of Economic Affairs (DEA), the app can be downloaded from the Union Budget Web Portal. 

It will have all Budget after Sitharaman’s speech is completed in the Parliament on February 1.

As India’s Budget goes paperless for the first time, this app should provide hassle-free access to all information and documents to key stakeholders, MPs, media, and the general public.

Meanwhile, here’s what business leaders, entrepreneurs, investors, and other stakeholders from the Indian startup ecosystem expect from the Indian government from Budget 2021-22.

The Interview 

With things slowly limping back to some sort of normalcy even as COVID-19 lingers on, the unemployment rate continues to be a concern. India’s overall unemployment rate increased significantly to nearly 10 percent in the week ended December 13, indicating that the unemployment rate is, at least, at a 23-week high. 

India’s largest private-sector employer, Bengaluru-based Quess Corp, believes the first thing to do in order to solve India’s employment problem is to move workers from the informal sector to the formal sector. Currently, Quess has around 3.30 lakh people on its rolls. 

Here are some key takeaways from the interview:

• The move from informal sector to formal sector
• Infrastructure and education critical
• Increased spending on part of the Indian government

Startup Spotlight

A CRM startup helping retailers like Nykaa, GAP increase sales

In 2015, Pranav Ahuja and Ayushmaan Kapoor quit their jobs to build a tablet-based loyalty programme for SMBs. They registered the startup as Xeno. After struggling to further scale it, in 2018, the Delhi-based startup pivoted to a CRM platform, which enables retailers to maximise revenue from their customers by enabling them to build deep customer understanding. Read more.

Editor’s Pick: Prime Ventures Partners Podcast

Learnings from Krish Subramanian’s entrepreneurial journey, building SaaS products, and more

The startup journey for entrepreneurs is not a cakewalk. Innovators need to ideate and find a solution, build scalable products, create a need for the products, attract customers, and build the entire business with their sheer hard work, effort, patience, and passion. In this episode of the Prime Venture Partners podcast, Krish Subramanian, Co-founder and CEO of Chargebee, spoke about his entrepreneurial journey from “zero to one”, i.e. building a unique product and disrupting the market. Read more. 

News & Updates

• Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will present the Union Budget on February 1, an unenviable task as she has her work cut out. This year, the focus will be on the recovery steps the government will be taking as the economy battles the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. 

• London-based IT services major Softline Group has acquired a majority stake in Kolkata-based Embee Software. Softline looks to utilise Embee’s expertise across cloud solutions, workplace modernisation tools, system integration services, application development, and more, in India.

• The provisions of the 2019 Amendment to the Companies Act, 2013, pertaining to CSR came into force on January 22. As per the new provisions, every entity that intends to undertake any CSR activity will have to register itself with the Centre by filing the form CSR-1 electronically with the Registrar of Companies, with effect from April 1, 2021.

• BharatPe claims to be one of the largest B2B fintech lenders in the country, disbursing Rs 200 crore to its merchant partners every month. It has set a target of disbursing Rs 1,000 crore of loans in FY21. If you want to be part of BharatPe's journey, these openings could be for you.

Before you go, stay inspired with… 

I think India will make the world's most superior products, and that is why we will win. 

— Vijay Shekhar Sharma, Founder and CEO, Paytm

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