Nutrition schemes have been clubbed together and jointly allocated funds lower than previous years. Saksham Anganwadi which subsumes four schemes- AnganwadiServices, Poshan Abhiyan, SAG and National Crèche Scheme has an allocation of Rs 20,105 crore, less than the 2020-’21 budget for ICDS alone.

Women constituted only 18.6 per cent of the population working or looking for work, whereas the number is 55.6 per cent for men, according to PLFS 2018-19. The pandemic and the economic crisis that followed only made the situation worse with a larger number of women dropping out of the workforce. To bridge this gender gap, the government needs to focus on both employment generation programmes and other provide maternity benefits, and creche facilities.

India is facing a higher burden of malnutrition, made worse by the COVID crisis. At such a time, it is important for the government to expand coverage of key nutrition schemes. In 2021-22, higher allocations are needed for Supplementary Nutrition Programme, RMNCH+A component of National Health Mission, and Scheme for Adolescent Girls. Unit costs for nutrition services should also be revised.

Children have largely remained unscathed by the virus, but disruptions due to the pandemic and the resultant lockdown have affected aspects of a child’s life and wellbeing. Countering such ramifications need financial commitment and a renewed policy focus for children in the Budget.

Services provided under a range of important schemes pertaining to nutrition, health, food security etc. that are necessary for achieving improved nutrition outcomes, got severely impacted under the devastating effect of the pandemic. Bold measures are urgently needed in the upcoming Union Budget, 2021-22 for scaling up these programmes.

The devastating impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on school-going children at one hand and the rolling out of National Education Policy 2020 on the other hand have made it amply clear that the education sector needs far more attention and priority in the upcoming Union Budget. This article highlights the areas which require adequate budgetary attention.

During the pandemic and economic crisis, women are facing greater unemployment, economic insecurity and gender-based violence. In 2021-22, the government must budget for greater coverage of critical services for women including employment guarantee under MGNERGS, maternity benefits under PMMVY, pensions under NSAP, and utilisation of Nirbhaya Fund to ensure safety and security of women.

Under the backdrop of the pandemic, budgets for water, sanitation and hygiene should be stressed on even more now than ever. Adequate budgets should be allocated towards sustainable water supply and soaps to be included in the Public Distribution System. Also, there should be a specific component in Budget 2021-22 for water facilities in anganwadis, schools and health centres.

Instead of a Covid cess, as proposed by many, higher tax rates on the super-rich whose incomes have been relatively less affected by the pandemic, might be a better solution for raising revenue. This would help generate more tax revenue as well as ensure that states get their due share of taxes.

Apart from efforts aimed at helping the agrarian economy recover from the pandemic, the Union government should accord higher budgetary expenditure on agricultural infrastructure. Provisioning for food security and strengthening public procurement of the produce are the need of the hour, especially when we are still far from the road to economic recovery.

Nirmala Sitharaman needs to announce bold measures for undertaking additional public spending on an urgent basis