Defense budget increased by 15%, no change in taxes, 3 Ayurvedic AIIMS including 7 high-speed rail corridors (file photo)
Digital Desk, New Delhi. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman presented the general budget for the year 2026-27 in Parliament on Sunday. She kept giving the budget speech for about 85 minutes, but did not announce any direct major relief for the common man. However, the government's special focus was on making tax filing easier and increasing expenditure in railways, health and defense sectors.
During this, the Finance Minister reached the Lok Sabha wearing the traditional Kanjeevaram saree of Tamil Nadu. Assembly elections are to be held in West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Assam and Puducherry this year, but no direct election announcement was made in the budget.
In this first budget presented after Operation Sindoor, the government mentioned the geo-political challenges and gave priority to the security of the country and made a big increase in the defense budget.
Emphasis on defense and security
The government has increased the defense budget from Rs 6.81 lakh crore to Rs 7.85 lakh crore. That means the total defense budget has increased by 15.2%.
Expenditure on arms procurement and modernization of the army has been increased from Rs 1.80 lakh crore to Rs 2.19 lakh crore, an increase of 22%. Apart from this, Rs 64 thousand crore have been kept for aircraft and aero engine development, Rs 25 thousand crore for Navy and Rs 1.71 lakh crore for pension.
Tax and return filing
There has been no change in the income tax slab. However, giving relief to taxpayers, the deadline for filing revised returns has been extended.
Now tax returns can be revised till 31st March instead of 31st December. The new Income Tax Act will come into effect from April 1, 2026 and the return form has been simplified so that common people can fill it easily.
5% custom duty has been removed on 17 imported medicines used in cancer treatment. This will make the treatment cheaper. Medicines for 7 rare diseases like haemophilia, sickle cell and muscular dystrophy will also be duty free.
The government has announced the opening of 3 Ayurvedic AIIMS. Also, there are preparations to make India a global bio-pharma manufacturing hub. One lakh healthcare professionals will be prepared in the next 5 years.
Railways, education and women
7 high-speed rail corridors will be built in the country, which include Mumbai-Pune, Pune-Hyderabad, Hyderabad-Chennai, Chennai-Bengaluru, Delhi-Varanasi and Varanasi-Siliguri.
Content creator labs will be created in 15 thousand secondary schools and 500 colleges. Hostels for girls will be built in 789 districts of the country. There will be at least one hostel in every district.
Green Energy, Farming and Employment
Tax exemptions have been increased on lithium-ion batteries and equipment related to battery energy storage systems, which can make electric vehicles cheaper. Emphasis has been laid on increasing employment related to farming, animal husbandry and fisheries. Coconut, cashew-cocoa, sandalwood industry and handloom sector will also be promoted.
Government's earnings and losses
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