Will Modi govt's first budget deliver on promises? Here's what international media thinks

PM Narendra Modi’s promise of `development’ is the focus word in most of the foreign media that have reported about the first budget of the new government. Most of the news articles focus on Modi’s poll promises and ponder about how he will be able to deliver them given the fact that he has to deal with`runaway inflation’ and a dismal growth rate that has been left behind by the UPA government.

The New York Times in a headline, ‘Budget Is Key Test for India’s New Government’ says that the India’s stock markets have been buoyant since Modi’s `sweeping victory'. It says that the government’s primary challenge will be to manage the delicate balance between encouraging growth and constraining the deficit, and juxtaposes that against the unrealistically low deficit target of the UPA.

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A specific point in the budget is the focus in Pakistan’s daily, The Dawn. It stresses on the gold import duty which is at 10 percent now and says that it is likely to be cut to 6 percent. The drop to 6 percent in import duty “is practical and it may be reduced further. A reduction in import duty may encourage more demand from the consumers”, Bachhraj Bamalwa, director at the All India Gems and Jewellery Trade Federation, says in the news report.

A cautioning note is struck in the South China Morning Post as it mentions India’s budget in its opinion column. It says that the first budget of the Modi government will be seen as an indicator of the administration’s commitment to free enterprise. The article goes on to spell out Modi’s promise to introduce economic reforms, create employment and boost foreign investment.

Will the Modi government be able to deliver on its poll promise of reviving stalled economic growth, asks the Washington Post. In its article, ‘ India’s budget to test new government’s mettle’, it sets the tone by highlighting the UPA government’s failure to curb inflation and bringing growth rate down to under five percent. It also hints at what to expect from the budget by stating that PM Modi had warned of a `bitter medicine’ to heal the battered government’s finances.