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Union Budget 2026 Infrastructure Spend: Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman presented the general budget for the financial year 2026-27 in Parliament on Sunday. Despite election overtones, the government has maintained distance from populist pronouncements and has adopted the ‘Reform Express’ Kept on track. In this budget of ₹53.5 lakh crore, special emphasis has been laid on micro, small and medium industries (MSME) as well as agriculture, tourism and digital infrastructure.

Historic surge in capital expenditure

The government has considered the development of infrastructure as the main basis of economic growth. This year the capital expenditure (Capex) has been increased to ₹12.22 lakh crore, which is much higher than last year’s ₹11.2 lakh crore. This is the highest allocation till date. The government aims to make manufacturing globally competitive in seven strategic sectors – pharmaceuticals, semiconductors, rare-earth magnets, chemicals, textiles, sports goods and capital goods.

‘tax’ on stock market jerk of

The announcement of increase in securities trading tax (STT) in the futures and options (F&O) segment during the budget speech shook the stock market.

F&O segment: STT increased from 0.02% to 0.05%.

Options: Tax increased from 0.01% to 0.15%. As a result, BSE Sensex fell by 1,547 points and Nifty fell by 495 points.

‘Growth Fund’ for MSMEs and Startups;

Small scale industries should be the ‘champions’ of the future. To create this, the government has proposed to create an SME Growth Fund of ₹10,000 crore. This fund will provide financial incentives to small enterprises based on selected criteria. Also, more than 350 structural reforms are said to be implemented to connect manufacturing units to the global supply chain.

Big bet on agriculture, tourism and biopharma

The focus has been on livestock, fisheries and high value agricultural crops to strengthen the rural economy.

Biopharma: An investment of ₹10,000 crore is proposed in the next 5 years to make India a global hub.

Tourism: ‘Eco-Friendly’ Mountain routes will be developed. Also, 15 new archaeological sites will be developed on the tourism map.

Digital Revolution: 20 years tax exemption for data centers

The government has taken a historic step towards making India a global data hub. Tax exemption for 20 years has been announced for foreign companies providing global data center services. In addition, foreign ‘cloud’ A special discount of 15 percent has been offered to companies to increase operational efficiency.

Connectivity: New freight corridor and high-speed rail

To give a new boost to the infrastructure, a new freight corridor will be established from Dankuni in the east to Surat in the west. In addition, seven ‘high-speed’ An outline for the development of rail corridors has been prepared.

Fiscal discipline and ‘developed India’ aim of

Amid Donald Trump’s trade policies and volatile commodity prices globally, Sitharaman has set a target of bringing the fiscal deficit down to 4.3 per cent. The government intends to reduce the debt-to-GDP ratio from 56.1% to 55.6%. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has called this budget a ‘highway of opportunities’ Stating that this is a strong foundation for the journey of developed India by 2047.

Changes in income tax and customs duty

Although there has been no change in the personal income tax slabs, the customs regime has been made more simple and transparent than before.

Big relief to cancer medicines

The government has decided to give complete exemption from customs duty on 17 life-saving cancer medicines, which will directly benefit the patients.

Reduction in duty on imported goods

The duty on items imported for personal use has now been reduced to 10 percent.

New Income Tax Act 2025 comes into force

The new Income Tax Act will be effective from April 1, in which the process and rules for filling the forms have been greatly simplified.

‘Carbon Capture’ to protect the environment

Finally, the Budget also includes ‘carbon capture’ to protect the environment. Future-oriented steps like spending ₹20,000 crore on (CCUS) technology and removing import duty on components for nuclear power projects have also been taken. This Budget is a unique combination of growth, trust and global integration.