Avanti Feeds, Apex Frozen, Waterbase shares surge after Budget calls for development of 500 reservoirs

Shares of aquaculture companies were witnessing buying interest in Sunday's special Budget session after Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman while presenting Budget for financial year 2026-27 announced that the government will take initiatives for integrated development of 500 reservoirs and Amrut Sarovars.

Shares of Avanti Feeds, Apex Frozen Foods, Coastal Corp, Waterbase, Zeal Acqua and BKV Industries rose between 1%-6.5% after the finance minister said that the government will take initiatives for integrated development of 500 reservoirs and Amrut Sarovars.

"We will undertake initiatives for integrated development of 500 reservoirs and Amrut Sarovars to strengthen the fisheries value chain in coastal areas and enable market linkages involving start-ups and women-led groups together with fish farmer producer organizations," Sitharaman said while presenting Budget 2026.

In another development Shares of Biocon, Piramal Pharma, Sun Pharma, Torrent Pharma and Dr Reddy's Labs rose up to 2.5% after Sitharaman announced an outlay of ₹10,000 crore over next five years for developing biologics and biosimilars.

NIFTY Pharma index advanced as much as 0.93% to hit an intraday high of 21,917.75 as many as 13 out of 20 shares in the index were trading higher.

Sitharaman proposed Biopharma Shakti, meaning biopharma strategy for health advancement through knowledge, technology, and innovation.

Sitharaman said, “India's disease burden is observed to be shifting towards non-communicable diseases, like diabetes, cancer and autoimmune disorders. Biologic medicines are key to longevity and quality of life at affordable costs. To develop India as a global biopharma manufacturing hub, I propose the Biopharma Shakti with an outlay of ₹10,000 crore over the next five years.”

Following Sitharaman’s announcement for boosting biosimilar sector, shares of Biocon, the country’s leading biologics and biosimilar maker rose as much as 2.95% to hit an intraday high of ₹377.60 and shares of its research arm Syngene International advanced 2.2%.