Finance minister Arun Jaitley this morning started presenting the NDA government’s first union budget. Here are the highlights from his budget speech:

* Emphasizes on fiscal prudence, need to generate more resources

* Assures to usher in policy regime that will lead to higher growth and low inflation

* Emphasizes on creating a vibrant India

* Says more anti-poverty programmes needed

* Stresses on reviving growth in manufacturing sector, infrastructure

* Says target of 4.1 per cent fiscal deficit is daunting but looks forward to it as a challenge

* FM blames the UPA government for slow decision-making, leading to loss of opportunity

* Says two years of below-5% growth has led to challenges to the economy

* Still, he has hope from the green shoots of recovery seen in global economy

* Looks forward to reining in inflation

* Aims to achieve 7-8 per cent economic growth rate in the next 3-4 years

Also read: the highlights of the budget 2014