Page 3 - Nirmala Sitharaman

India's economy and its fundamentals strong: FM hits back at Rahul Gandhi

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Sunday hit back at Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, saying that India's economic fundamentals are strong and the Budget addresses the needs of all sections of society. "With due respect, I don't know what course correction he (Gandhi) is referring to. Economy and its fundamentals are strong. Global uncertainty is facing many of our sectors for whom we have brought in so many different schemes for those small and medium enterprises, textiles, leather...for farmers and women entrepreneurs," she said. These are ways in which the government is reaching out to the common small people and making sure that they are receiving the benefit of various schemes, she said in customary post-Budget interaction with the media. She was reacting to the Leader of the Opposition's comment in a post on X, which said, "Youth without jobs. Falling manufacturing. Investors pulling out capital. Household savings plummeting. Farmers in distress. Looming global shocks - all

Union Budget 2026: What industry leaders say about reforms, capex push

Union Budget 2026 drew mixed reactions from industry leaders, who welcomed the growth and capex push while stressing the need for execution clarity, long-term policy support and reform follow-through

Union Budget 2026: What gets cheaper, what gets costlier | Budget 2026 highlights | Middle class

What gets cheaper and what gets costlier after Union Budget 2026? This video explains the key price changes announced in Budget 2026 and how they affect the middle class and daily expenses.

From Defence to R&D, what didn't make the cut in Sitharaman's Budget speech

Key sectors such as defence and railways saw large FY27 allocations in the Budget documents, even though they found little or no mention in Sitharaman's Budget 2026 speech

Budget 2026: Sitharaman did not address key concerns, says P Chidambaram

Chidambaram, who has served as the finance minister four times, said the Budget failed "the test of economic strategy and economic statesmanship"

India clears foreign funding of manufacturing equipment, boosting Apple

In India, unlike China, Apple was concerned that if it paid for machines for its contract manufacturers, Indian law could consider that ​a so-called "business connection" and impose taxes

Budget support will help MSMEs scale from local to global: PM Modi

Prime Minister Narendra Modi said the Union Budget, aligned with India's recent trade deals, provides unprecedented support to MSMEs, sunrise sectors and infrastructure, laying the foundation for jobs

'Budget 2026 puts manufacturing, technology at centre of growth push'

Budget's priority seems to be to reinforce India's long term growth narrative while maintain a tight balancing act as far as fiscal discipline is concerned.

Union Budget 2026: From semiconductors to rare-earth hubs, key takeaways

Budget 2026: The Budget lays out new schemes and higher spending on infrastructure, technology, healthcare and jobs, while offering support for industry and students

Union Budget 2026: Where does the rupee come from and where does it go?

The central government raises its money from a mix of taxes, borrowings, and other receipts, while it is spent on states, interest payments and pensions

Sitharaman announces various customs duty exemptions in 2026 Budget

The exemptions are aimed at simplifying tax rates, supporting domestic manufacturing, boosting exports, and removing old duty exemptions that are no longer needed

How Trump tariffs shaped FM Sitharaman's manufacturing push in Budget 2026

With US tariffs hitting Indian exports, Budget 2026-27 doubles down on manufacturing, capex and targeted relief for tariff-hit sectors

India to benefit from 'ripple effects' of measures in 2026 Budget: FM

Sitharaman said that the focus will be on tier-2 and tier-3 cities so that growth is not limited to big metros

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

Budget 2026: Onus of executing incremental capex shifting towards states

Aditi Nayar analyses the Budget's fiscal prudence, higher public capex via states, a 4.3 per cent deficit target, debt consolidation, and the impact of higher gross borrowings on bond yields

Stock Market Highlights: Sensex tanks 1,547 pts, Nifty ends at 24,825 as STT hike dampens mood

Budget 2026 | Stock Market LIVE Updates on February 1, 2026: FM Sitharaman on Sunday has raised STT on future trades to 0.05 per cent from 0.02 per cent under Budget 2026.

Union Budget 2026: Zero customs duty for nuclear power imports till 2035

The Union Budget presented by Nirmala Sitharaman removes a key cost barrier for nuclear projects as India prepares for a major capacity expansion and opens the sector to private participation

STT hike, bond market boost: 10 positives and 5 negatives of Budget 2026

Capital expenditure has been raised to ₹12.2 lakh crore (~9 per cent YoY), reinforcing the infrastructure- and manufacturing-led growth strategy without resorting to populist fiscal slippage

CIC, Public Enterprises Selection Board get ₹39.14 allocation in Budget

The Central Information Commission (CIC) and the Public Enterprises Selection Board (PESB) have been allocated Rs 39.14 crore in the Union Budget 2026-27, a nominal increase of around Rs 3 crore from the revised estimate of Rs 36.94 crore for 2025-26. However, the Budget Estimate for the CIC and PESB in 2025-26 was higher at Rs 42.49 crore. According to the Budget documents presented by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, the provision is meant for establishment-related expenditure of the Central Information Commission and the Public Enterprises Selection Board. In Budget parlance, the allocations made at the time of presentation of the annual Budget are known as Budget Estimates (BE), while the updated figures, reflecting changes in revenue and expenditure during the course of the financial year, are referred to as Revised Estimates (RE). The government has also earmarked Rs 3.5 crore for the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) for the propagation of the Right to Informat

Buyback proceeds for all shareholders to be taxed as capital gains: FM

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Sunday said buyback proceeds for all types of shareholders will be taxed as capital gains. Presenting the Union Budget for 2026-27, Sitharaman also proposed to raise Securities Transaction Tax to 0.05 per cent on commodity futures from 0.02 per cent. She further said MAT (Minimum Alternate Tax ) will be made final tax and the rate will be reduced to 14 per cent from current 15 per cent. She also said the government has proposed a joint panel of Corporate Affairs Ministry and CBDT for incorporation of income computation and disclosure standards. National Destination Digital Knowledge Grid will be established to digitally document all places of significance, she added.