Nirmala Sitharaman presents Budget 2026-27 in Parliament; outlines 3 'kartavya'

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Sunday said the government has pursued “far-reaching structural reforms” while maintaining a strong thrust on public investment, which has helped India deliver a growth rate of “around 7%” and make “substantial strides in poverty reduction”.

Presenting the Union Budget 2026-27, Sitharaman said the government has built “domestic manufacturing capacity, energy security, and reduced critical input dependencies”, while ensuring that “citizens benefit from every action of the government” through reforms supporting employment generation, agricultural productivity and household purchasing power.

She said India today faces “an external environment in which trade and multilateralism are imperative and access to resources and supply chains are disrupted”, while new technologies are “transforming production systems” and sharply increasing demands on water, energy and critical minerals.

Sitharaman said India “will continue to take confident steps, balancing ambition with inclusion”, adding that the country “must also remain deeply integrated with global markets, exporting more and attracting stable long-term investment”.

3 'kartavya' guiding Union Budget 2026-27

Outlining the framework of the Budget, she said it is inspired by three “kartavya” or duties: to “accelerate and sustain economic growth by enhancing productivity and competitiveness”, to “fulfil aspirations of our people and build their capacity”, and to ensure that “every family, community, region and sector has access to resources, amenities and opportunities for meaningful participation”.

She said the government’s “reform express is well on its way”, noting that over 350 reforms have been rolled out since 2025, including GST simplification, notification of labour codes and rationalisation of mandatory quality control orders.

Ahead of the Budget speech, Sitharaman laid the 16th Finance Commission report for tax revenue devolution between Centre and states for 2026-2031 in the Lok Sabha.

The Finance Commission, which has been set up under the Constitution, provides a formula for devolution of taxes between Centre and states.

Cesses and surcharge levied by the Centre are not part of the divisible pool.

The 16th Finance Commission, headed by former Vice-Chairman of Niti Aayog Arvind Panagariya, was set up on December 31, 2023.