scorecardresearch
Add as a preferred source on Google
Sunday, February 22, 2026
HomeBudget

Budget

Budget 2026 squarely puts manufacturing at the centre of India’s growth strategy

The Budget’s emphasis on seven ‘strategic and frontier’ manufacturing areas is clearly not random. These are areas of high import dependence, strong employment, and rising geopolitical sensitivity.

Budget 2026 is deliberately boring. Given the global climate, it’s a smart decision

Budget 2026 does not seek to redefine India’s growth model; rather, it reinforces the existing framework characterised by fiscal restraint, public investment, and manufacturing depth.

North India to get its own NIMHANS, says FM. Doctors react: ‘Visionary’ to ‘no Ayurveda pls’

New Delhi: The announcement of a ‘NIMHANS of the north’ in the Union Budget is a move that could strengthen India’s mental health system,...

Budget 2026: Push for India’s bond market needs the foundations fixed first

Corporate bonds are priced as a spread over the risk-free rate. In India, the reference risk-free rate is unreliable as large institutions are mandated to buy and hold government bonds.

Can AI make farming precise? Budget agritech scheme excites startups, farmer unions are cold

FM Nirmala Sitharaman announced Bharat-VISTAAR, multilingual AI tool to enhance farm productivity and enable decision-making for farmers. It’s received mixed reactions.

Budget 2026 HIGHLIGHTS: Boost for IB, CAPF; RSS affiliates say Budget failed farmers, labourers

This is the second full-year budget of Modi 3.0, and Sitharaman's ninth. FM's speech lasted 83 minutes.

No farm loan waiver or Ladki Bahin stipend hike, Maharashtra budget’s focus on industry & infrastructure

Gadchiroli 'steel hub', Shaktipeeth Highway, Shivaji memorial among other projects find place in the Maharashtra budget presented by Finance Minister Ajit Pawar Monday.

Tax cuts won’t fix low growth. Govt must look beyond fiscal policy

Since 2016, the govt has tried various fiscal tactics to stimulate growth, from increasing expenditure to introducing welfare schemes. The tax cut is the latest of these measures.

Middle class gets a Budget that mirrors their aspirations. Modi knows the pulse

Union Budget 2025-26 has clear aims: accelerate growth, enhance the spending power of India’s rising middle class, invigorate private sector investment & uplift household sentiment.

USIBC calls for deeper reforms & roadmap, including for nuclear, following Budget 2025

US-India Business Council praises focus on nuclear energy & critical minerals but stresses need for clear private-sector roadmaps & streamlined regulatory approvals for long-term success.

On Camera

Youth Congress, your foolish protest helped the Modi govt climb out of the AI summit hole

In tactical terms, the shirtless protest was worse than a self-goal. Suddenly, the fiascos of the AI Summit were forgotten, and the Youth Congress’s disruption became the issue.

In the West, there’s anxiety. In India, optimism—Rishi Sunak says India poised to be leader in AI

On Wednesday, the former UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak was speaking in New Delhi at a Carnegie & Observer Research Foundation event on AI.

MoD, IAF agree on some exemptions to HAL for Tejas Mk1A, but no compromise on ‘must-have’ capabilities

IAF is fine with accepting the aircraft with 'must-haves', even if some other steps remain pending, which may take at least another year, it is learnt.

No country is ever fully sovereign. Cold War era taught India its real meaning

India’s fraught neighbourhood places multiple constraints on its strategic choices. It leaves no time to take a deep breath, lean back and reset.