Budget 2026 highlights: A look at key numbers announced by FM Sitharaman

From SME funding and services-led growth to tax tweaks and tourism, Nirmala Sitharaman's record ninth Budget signalled where public spending and policy are headed in FY27

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on February 1, 2026, presented the Union Budget 2026 in Parliament, delivering a record ninth consecutive full Budget, and the first on a Sunday. The speech, which ranged from manufacturing and services to skilling, tourism and tax administration, signalled an attempt to align near-term fiscal choices with the longer arc of Viksit Bharat.

 

Here are the main announcements and numbers that framed Sitharaman’s Budget 2026–27 speech:

 

SME funding and fiscal transfers 

The government proposed a ₹10,000 crore SME Growth Fund aimed at backing a new cohort of “future champions”, with incentives linked to pre-defined performance and scaling parameters. Alongside this, the Self-Reliant India Fund, set up in 2021, will receive an additional ₹2,000 crore to extend risk capital support to micro enterprises.

 

 

On fiscal transfers, the Centre said it will provide ₹1.4 trillion to states in 2026–27 as 16th Finance Commission grants, which will cover rural and urban local bodies as well as disaster management.

 

Tax and compliance changes

  Several tax and compliance changes have also been announced. The rate for tax collected at source on overseas tour packages will be cut to 2 per cent, down from the existing 5 per cent and 20 per cent slabs, without any threshold condition. Manpower supply services will be explicitly classified under payments to contractors for TDS purposes, attracting a rate of either 1 per cent or 2 per cent to remove ambiguity.

 

IT, data centres and safe harbour norms

  For the IT sector, the safe harbour threshold for services will be raised sharply from ₹300 crore to ₹2,000 crore. A separate safe harbour of 15 per cent on cost was proposed for data centre services provided from India to related entities. Global data centres operating in India will also get a tax holiday through 2047. Non-residents paying tax on a presumptive basis will be exempted from minimum alternate tax (MAT).

 

Services, labour and care economy

  On the labour and services front, Sitharaman announced a high-powered ‘Education to Employment and Enterprise’ standing committee. The panel will focus on policy measures to position the services sector as a central growth engine. A national Care Ecosystem, spanning geriatric and allied services, will also be developed, with plans to train 1.5 lakh caregivers over the next year.

 

Education, AVGC and creative economy

  In education and the creative economy, the Budget proposed support for the Indian Institute of Creative Technologies, Mumbai, to establish AVGC content creator labs in 15,000 secondary schools and 500 colleges. Separately, viability gap funding or capital support will be used to set up one girls’ hostel in every district.

 

 

Tourism and cultural infrastructure 

Tourism and culture featured prominently in the Budget 2026 speech. The government announced a pilot programme to upskill 10,000 tourist guides across 20 iconic destinations through a standardised 12-week hybrid training module. Fifteen archaeological sites, including Lothal, Dholavira, Rakhigarhi, Adichanallur, Sarnath, Hastinapur and Leh Palace, will be developed as immersive cultural destinations.

 

Eastern region and electric mobility push

  For the eastern region, the Union Budget for FY27 outlined plans for an integrated East Coast Industrial Corridor with a connected node at Durgapur, the development of five tourism destinations across the five Purvodaya states, and the deployment of 4,000 electric buses.

 

Logistics, transport and urban infrastructure

  In logistics and transport, the Budget announced a Coastal Cargo Promotion Scheme to push freight away from roads and railways. The stated objective is to double the share of inland waterways and coastal shipping from the current 6 per cent to 12 per cent by 2047.

 

Urban infrastructure also received a push, with a proposal to spend ₹5,000 crore per City Economic Region (CER)  over five years to upgrade core infrastructure and basic services in Tier-I and Tier-II cities.

 

TCS, STT and customs duty changes 

The Budget also proposed to rationalise tax collected at source on specific goods including alcoholic liquor, scrap and minerals, to 2 per cent, while cutting the rate on tendu leaves from 5 per cent to 2 per cent. The securities transaction tax on futures will be increased to 0.05 per cent from 0.02 per cent.

 

The finance minister also announced that the tariff rate on all dutiable goods imported for personal use will be halved from 20 per cent to 10 per cent.