Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman presented the Union Budget 2025-26 on February 1, 2025. She called it a roadmap for economic growth, social welfare, and technological advancement. Quoting Telugu poet and playwright Shri Gurajada Appa Rao’s famous saying, “A country is not just its soil; a country is its people,” the FM presented the Union Budget 2025-26 with the theme “Sabka Vikas”. Here’s a look at the biggest takeaways from this year’s budget.
Budget 2025-26: Four Engines of Viksit Bharat
The Union Budget 2025-2026 promised to accelerate growth, secure inclusive development, power private sector investments, uplift household sentiments, and enhance the spending power of India’s rising middle class. The Budget proposes development measures focusing on the poor (Garib), youth, farmers (Annadata) and women (Nari). In line with this theme, Sitharaman outlined the broad Principles of Viksit Bharat to encompass the following:
- Zero-poverty.
- Hundred per cent good quality school education.
- Access to high-quality, affordable, and comprehensive healthcare.
- Hundred per cent skilled labour with meaningful employment.
- Seventy per cent women in economic activities.
- Making our country the ‘food basket of the world’.
Budget 2025-26: Key Takeaways
The Union Budget highlighted Agriculture, MSME, Investment, and Exports as the engines in the journey to Viksit Bharat.
1. Agriculture
- Prime Minister Dhan-Dhaanya Krishi Yojana to be launched in partnership with the states, covering 100 districts with low productivity, moderate crop intensity and below-average credit parameters.
- A comprehensive multi-sectoral programme to be launched in partnership with states to address under-employment in agriculture through skilling, investment, technology, and invigorating the rural economy.
- Government to launch a 6-year “Mission for Atma Nirbharta in Pulses” with a focus on Tur, Urad and Masoor. NAFED and NCCF to procure these pulses from farmers during the next 4 years.
- A Makhana Board to be established to improve the production, processing, value addition, and marketing of makhana.
- A National Mission on High Yielding Seeds to be launched aiming at strengthening the research ecosystem, targeted development and propagation of seeds with high yield, and commercial availability of more than 100 seed varieties.
- Government to bring a framework for sustainable harnessing of fisheries from the Indian Exclusive Economic Zone and High Seas, with a special focus on the Andaman & Nicobar and Lakshadweep Islands.
- A 5-year mission was announced to facilitate significant improvements in the productivity and sustainability of cotton farming and promote extra-long staple cotton varieties.
- The Enhanced Credit through KCC limit under the Modified Interest Subvention Scheme to be enhanced from ₹3 lakh to ₹5 lakh for loans taken through the KCC.
- A Urea plant with an annual capacity of 12.7 lakh metric tons to be set up at Namrup, Assam.
2. MSME
- The investment and turnover limits for the classification of all MSMEs to be enhanced to 2.5 and 2 times respectively.
- Customized credit cards with ₹5 lakh limit for micro-enterprises registered on Udyam portal, 10 lakh cards to be issued in the first year.
- A new Fund of Funds, with an expanded scope and a fresh contribution of ₹10,000 crore to be set up.
- A new scheme to be launched for 5 lakh first-time Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribe/women entrepreneurs to provide term loans up to ₹2 crore in the next 5 years.
- To enhance the productivity, quality and competitiveness of India’s footwear and leather sector, a focus product scheme was announced to facilitate employment for 22 lakh persons, generate turnover of ₹4 lakh crore and exports of over ₹1.1 lakh crore.
- A scheme to create high-quality, unique, innovative, and sustainable toys, making India a global hub for toys announced.
- A National Institute of Food Technology, Entrepreneurship and Management to be set up in Bihar.
3. Investment
Investing in People
- Saksham Anganwadi and Poshan 2.0: The cost norms for nutritional support to be enhanced appropriately.
- 50,000 Atal Tinkering Labs to be set up in Government schools in the next 5 years.
- Broadband connectivity to be provided to all Government secondary schools and primary health centres in rural areas under the Bharatnet project.
- Bharatiya Bhasha Pustak Scheme announced to provide digital-form Indian language books for school and higher education.
- 5 National Centres of Excellence for skilling to be set up with global expertise and partnerships to equip our youth with the skills required for “Make for India, Make for the World” manufacturing.
- Additional infrastructure to be created in the 5 IITs started after 2014 to facilitate education for 6,500 more students.
- A Centre of Excellence in Artificial Intelligence for education to be set up with a total outlay of ₹500 crore.
- 10,000 additional seats to be added in medical colleges and hospitals next year, adding to 75000 seats in the next 5 years.
- The Government will set up Day Care Cancer Centres in all district hospitals in the next 3 years, 200 Centres in 2025-26.
- Scheme to be revamped with enhanced loans from banks, UPI-linked credit cards with ₹30,000 limit, and capacity-building support.
Investing in the Economy
- An outlay of ₹1.5 lakh crore was proposed for the 50-year interest-free loans to states for capital expenditure and incentives for reforms.
- A Second Plan for 2025-30 to plough back capital of ₹10 lakh crore in new projects announced.
- An Urban Challenge Fund of ₹1 lakh crore was announced to implement the proposals for ‘Cities as Growth Hubs’. ‘Creative Redevelopment of Cities’ and ‘Water and Sanitation’, allocation of ₹10,000 crore proposed for 2025-26.
- Nuclear Energy Mission for research & development of Small Modular Reactors (SMR) with an outlay of ₹20,000 crore to be set up, 5 indigenously developed SMRs to be operational by 2033.
- A Maritime Development Fund with a corpus of ₹25,000 crore to be set up, with up to 49 per cent contribution by the Government, and the balance from ports and the private sector.
- A fund of ₹15,000 crore aimed at expeditious completion of another 1 lakh dwelling units, with contributions from the Government, banks and private investors, was announced.
Investing in Innovation
- ₹20,000 crore allocated for a private sector-led R&D initiative.
- 10,000 PM Research Fellowships with enhanced financial aid for IITs & IISc.
- 2nd Gene Bank with 10 lakh germplasm lines for food security.
- Gyan Bharatam Mission for manuscript conservation covering 1 crore manuscripts.
4. Exports
- An Export Promotion Mission, with sectoral and ministerial targets, driven jointly by the Ministries of Commerce, MSME, and Finance to be set up.
- ‘BharatTradeNet'(BTN) for international trade to be set up as a unified platform for trade documentation and financing solutions.
- A national framework to be formulated as guidance to states for promoting Global Capability Centres in emerging tier 2 cities.
Budget Estimates 2025-26
- The total receipts other than borrowings and the total expenditure are estimated at ₹34.96 lakh crore and ₹50.65 lakh crore respectively.
- The net tax receipts are estimated at ₹28.37 lakh crore.
- The fiscal deficit is estimated to be 4.4 per cent of GDP.
- The gross market borrowings are estimated at ₹14.82 lakh crore.
- Capex Expenditure of ₹11.21 lakh crore (3.1% of GDP) earmarked in FY 2025-26.
