As the Budget attempts to democratise technology in a determined drive toward digitisation, technology enterprises and startups concentrating on new-age platforms, such as drones, space photography, and artificial intelligence, will likely be at the forefront of the list of beneficiaries.

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman suggested a slew of initiatives on Tuesday, with technology at the centre, to promote a wide range of industries, including skilling, agriculture, education, mental health, logistics, and the support of small and medium businesses.

According to Nasscom, the IT industry group, the Budget is investing big on technology and will help shape this decade as India's "Techade" decade.

“Digital and IT have been given a central place in the Budget. It is one of the four pillars of governance. Be it logistics, health, education, language translation, IT has been given an important place," Ashwini Vaishnaw, the minister for electronics and IT, said at a press conference.

The Budget, according to Rajesh Gopinathan, managing director of Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), gives several growth prospects for the technology industry across sectors including railroads, healthcare, education, financial services, and regulatory agencies, which will help India grow faster.

“The decision to introduce E-Passport will further streamline the overall citizen experience, enhance security, and facilitate smoother international travel,” Gopinathan added.

TCS, India's largest software services company, was awarded the second phase of the ministry of external affairs' Passport Seva Program, costing Rs 8,000 crore, last month.

According to experts, the government's digital push would result in more IT and technology projects being awarded, which will benefit Indian and international technology companies.

“If you start reading the indicators – be they investments in STEM, R&D, innovation, digital currency and blockchain – they underscore that India's position as a powerhouse will depend upon its dominance on technology,” told CP Gurnani, managing director of Tech Mahindra. “We will be a powerful nation because we are not only 5G enabled, but the broad spectrum of the country is technology enabled”.

Drones will be encouraged to be used in a variety of applications, and start-ups will be encouraged to develop a 'Drone Shakti' initiative to enable drone usage through various applications and also allow for drones to be used "as a service," according to the government. Farmers will be able to employ drones for land surveying, insecticide spraying, and land record digitization, according to Sitharaman.

“It (the Budget) is focused on providing India with a strong foundation for the Techade and establishing it as a global hub in terms of technology innovation,” Nasscom said in a statement.

It did, however, point out that some issues were left unaddressed, such as increased emphasis on industry-led R&D in emerging technologies, enabling clarifications to allow units in special economic zones (SEZs) flexibility to adopt the hybrid work model, and simplifying ESOP taxation by making the axation regime available to all DPIIT recognised start-ups and taxing employees only when they sell the shares.