Home Business PM Modi, FM Nirmala Sitharaman arrive at Parliament

PM Modi, FM Nirmala Sitharaman arrive at Parliament

By
JKN Author
-
14
0
PM Modi, FM Nirmala Sitharaman arrive at Parliament

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman rises to present Budget for 2026-27 in Lok Sabha.

February 1, 2026 10:59 am

Stock markets gain momentum ahead of Budget presentation

February 1, 2026 10:45 am

Stock market benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty gained momentum and were trading higher in morning trade on Sunday ahead of the Budget 2026-27 presentation.

After fluctuating in early trade, the 30-share BSE Sensex later bounced back and climbed 272.23 points to 82,542.01 in morning trade. The 50-share NSE Nifty edged higher by 66.9 points to 25,387.55.

Budget 2026 LIVE: “This is a ‘deform’ budget, not ‘reform’ budget”

February 1, 2026 10:38 am

India’s opposition leaders have started arriving at the parliament for Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman’s budget speech at 11:00 am. Here’s what they had to say:

Akhilesh Yadav (Samajwadi Party): This is “deform budget” not reforms budget… This budget is for 5% of the country’s population. BJP just tries to set its own people…”

Sachin Pilot (Congress): Despite being in power for years, I think the BJP has focused on issues which are not very impactful on the ground. The Govt has formed a new law to almost scrap MGNREGA. They say that they are reforming it, but the reality is that on average, 35 days of MGNREGA are being used in this country.

Cabinet approves Union Budget 2026-27.

February 1, 2026 10:38 am

This is the third Budget of the BJP-led NDA government in its third term in office.

Sitharaman had in her first Budget in 2019 replaced the leather briefcase — which was in use for decades for carrying Budget documents — with a traditional ‘bahi-khata’ wrapped in red cloth. This year’s Budget would also be in paperless form.

FY27 Budget: Key numbers to watch out for

February 1, 2026 10:33 am

* Fiscal Deficit: The budgeted fiscal deficit, which is the difference between the government expenditure and income, for the current fiscal (April 2025 to March 2026 or FY26), is estimated at 4.4 per cent of GDP.

Having achieved a fiscal consolidation roadmap with a deficit below 4.5 per cent of GDP in FY26, markets will keenly watch for direction on debt-to-GDP reduction in the FY27 Budget, as well as whether the government will provide a specific fiscal deficit number for the next financial year. There is an expectation that the government could announce a fiscal deficit of 4 per cent of the GDP for FY27.


* Capital Expenditure: The government’s planned capital expenditure for this fiscal year is budgeted at Rs 11.2 lakh crore. The government is likely to maintain its focus on capital expenditure in the upcoming Budget, with a 10-15 per cent increase in the capex target from the current level, as private sector players remain cautious.

The government would have space for capex, and it should be in excess of Rs 12 lakh crore, as the pay revision will be announced in FY28, leaving little room for others.


* Debt Roadmap: The finance minister, in her 2024-25 budget speech, had stated that from 2026-27 onwards, fiscal policy would endeavour to maintain the fiscal deficit in a way that the central government debt is on a declining path as a percentage of GDP.

Markets will closely look for the debt consolidation roadmap from FY27 onwards to see when the finance minister sees general government debt-to-GDP fall to the 60 per cent target. The general government debt-to-GDP ratio is estimated to be over 85 per cent in 2025, which includes central government debt of around 55 per cent.


* Borrowing: The government’s gross borrowing Budget was Rs 14.80 lakh crore in FY26. The government borrows from the market to fund its fiscal deficit. The borrowing number will be watched by the market as it gives a sense of the fiscal health of the country, and also about revenue and non-revenue collection.


* Tax Revenue: The 2025-26 Budget had pegged gross tax revenues at Rs 42.70 lakh crore, an 11 per cent growth over FY25. This includes Rs 25.20 lakh crore estimated to come from direct taxes (personal income tax + corporate tax), and Rs 17.5 lakh crore from indirect taxes (customs + excise duty + GST).


* GST: Goods and Services Tax (GST) collection in 2025-26 is estimated to rise 11 per cent to Rs 11.78 lakh crore. FY27 GST revenue projections will be closely watched, as the revenue growth is expected to gain momentum with the government’s implementation of rate reductions since September 2025.


* Nominal GDP: India’s nominal GDP growth (real GDP plus inflation) in FY26 was estimated to be 10.1 per cent, while the real GDP growth estimated by NSO is 7.4 per cent. However, nominal GDP has been revised downward to 8 per cent due to inflation falling below the estimation during the Budget.

FY27 nominal GDP growth projections in the Budget will give an idea about the inflation trajectory in the next fiscal. As per the various estimates, the government may announce a nominal GDP between 10.5 and 11 per cent for FY27.


* Dividend: The Government estimates a Rs 1.50 lakh crore dividend, which includes Rs 1.02 lakh crore from RBI and financial institutions and the rest Rs 48,000 crore from CPSEs.

RBI has already paid a substantially higher dividend of Rs 2.69 lakh crore in FY26, and the FY26 Budget numbers are likely to be revised upwards. The dividend income that the government expects will be keenly watched, given the tax revenue sacrifices it made from income tax and GST cuts.


* Subsidy: The government had earmarked Rs 3.83 lakh crore towards subsidies for the current financial year ending March 2026. The food subsidy was pegged at a maximum of Rs 2.03 lakh crore.


* Spotlight would also be on spending on key schemes like VBG RAM G, as well as key sectors like health and education.

Budget 2026 LIVE: GST collections up 6.2% to ₹1.93 lakh crore

February 1, 2026 10:33 am

Gross GST collections rose 6.2% to over ₹1.93 lakh crore in January, mainly on higher revenue from imports. Total refunds declined 3.1% to ₹22,665 crore. Net GST collections, however, grew 7.6% to about ₹1.71 lakh crore in January.

Effective September 22, 2025, GST rates on about 375 items were slashed, making goods cheaper. Also, a compensation cess is levied only on tobacco and related products, as opposed to luxury, sin and demerit goods earlier. The lowering of GST rates has impacted revenue collections.

Gross tax collections from domestic transactions grew 4.8% to ₹1.41 lakh crore, while import revenues were up 10.1% to ₹52,253 crore in January.

Budget 2026 LIVE Updates: President Murmu feeds FM Sitharaman customary dahi-cheeni ahead of record Budget presentation

February 1, 2026 10:17 am

President Droupadi Murmu feeds Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman the customary ‘dahi-cheeni‘ (curd and sugar) ahead of her ninth consecutive Union Budget presentation.

Budget 2026 LIVE Updates: PM Modi, Amit Shah arrive at Parliament for Sitharaman\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\’s Budget presentation

February 1, 2026 10:21 am

PM Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah have arrived at Parliament for Nirmala Sitharaman’s ninth straight Union Budget presentation.

Nirmala Sitharaman arrives at Parliament after meeting President Murmu

February 1, 2026 10:21 am

Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has arrived at Parliament to present her record 9th Budget. Sitharaman is carrying the Budget particulars and her speech in the the digital ‘Budget tablet’. It contains the Budget document. Other Union Cabinet ministers, such as Home Minister Amit Shah, Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw, Bhupender Yadav, among others have also arrived.

Budget 2026 LIVE Updates: President Murmu feeds FM Sitharaman customary dahi-cheeni ahead of record Budget presentation

February 1, 2026 10:17 am

President Droupadi Murmu feeds Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman the customary ‘dahi-cheeni‘ (curd and sugar) ahead of her ninth consecutive Union Budget presentation.


Greater Kashmir

RELATED ARTICLESMORE FROM AUTHOR