scorecardresearch
Add as a preferred source on Google
Monday, February 23, 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

Life in Delhi isn’t easy for Northeast Indians. Racism is always round the corner

Racism is a problem for privileged mainlanders only when it's meted out to them abroad. In their own backyard, it's normalised as 'I was just kidding. Chill yaar'.

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.

Post-elections, Bangladesh Army shuffles top military & intel posts, defence adviser in India recalled

Orders issued by Army Headquarters reassign key operational commanders and senior intelligence officials, including the head of DGFI, the country’s premier military intelligence agency.

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.