India's retail inflation, measured by the Consumer Price Index (CPI), increased to 3.48 per cent in April, up from 3.40 per cent in March, primarily due to a surge in prices of gold and silver jewellery, as well as certain kitchen staples like tomatoes and cauliflower.
The FM proposed a rule-based automated process for small taxpayers in FY27 Budget.
'If you go by the capital expenditure, this is a good defence budget. But we will have to see if the government can keep defence spending at 2 per cent or higher in 2027-2028.'
The forthcoming Budget could think of maintaining public capital expenditure at 3 per cent so that domestic resources are available for private investments, points out N R Bhanumurthy.
What items did Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman make costlier?
Various reforms, including GST, labour codes, and quality control order, have been rolled out since August 15.
A government mandate requiring central public sector enterprises to use the Trade Receivables Discounting System (TReDS) for settling small business invoices is expected to significantly increase volumes on these platforms.
The Budget offers a limited-time regularisation window with clear thresholds, defined payments, and immunity from penalty or prosecution.
In the 15 Union Budget presentation days of the Narendra Modi government since it came to power in 2014, the BSE benchmark Sensex has ended in negative territory eight times.
Under the TMC, Bengal has seen expansion of welfare, but not big-ticket private investment.
The Union Budget allocates Rs 1,492 crore for the functioning of both Houses of Parliament, with specific provisions for Lok Sabha, Rajya Sabha, and related secretariats.
The fiscal tilt towards capex benefits companies in investment-related sectors like capital goods, defence equipment, engineering & construction and metal & mining. The planned cut in revenue expenditure will weigh on companies in consumption sectors like FMCG, consumer durables and retail.
Two dedicated freight corridors -- Eastern and Western -- are in operation covering several states and districts.
This year's Economic Survey and the Union Budget were more closely followed for more reasons than one.
Customs regimes can lead to labyrinthine legal disputes. Budget 2026 must recognise that an excessively defensive Customs posture can itself become a trade barrier, point out Mukesh Butani and Shankey Agrawal.
The government on Sunday gave a strong push to upgradation and expansion of healthcare infrastructure, medical education and pharma sector with the Union Budget 2026-27 announcing a slew of steps, including those aimed at making India a global hub for allied healthcare professionals and biopharma manufacturing.
Andhra Pradesh is spearheading an ambitious initiative to establish a fully integrated beach sand minerals, rare earth, and titanium ecosystem, aiming to attract over 50,000 crore in investments over the next decade. This move is part of India's broader strategy to reduce its reliance on China for strategic minerals and permanent magnets, with the state preparing a comprehensive rare earth policy and planning specialised industrial clusters.
In 2025-26, the government allocated Rs 6,81,210 crore for defence budget.
The government's Budget announcements providing tax holiday for data centres, setting up of city economic regions (CERs) and funding to improve infrastructure in Tier-II and -III cities may give an indirect boost to India's realty sector, said industry executives.
'The trade deficit in some sectors is huge and that is an area of opportunity to localise.'
'We believe the truth is in the middle, and that India is at an important crossroads.'
rediffGURU Jinal Mehta answers readers' financial planning and health insurance queries
The budget session of the Delhi Assembly concluded with over 15 hours of legislative business. Speaker Vijender Gupta voiced concerns over the opposition's conduct during the session.
Haryana Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini announced a CBI investigation into the Rs 590-crore IDFC First Bank fraud case, emphasising the government's zero-tolerance approach to wrongdoing. The State Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau had previously investigated the case, arresting several individuals, including ex-IDFC First Bank employees. The alleged fraud involved the diversion of Haryana government funds intended for fixed deposits.
Three laws passed in Parliament could boost central revenues, reshape GST cess flows, shift MGNREGA costs to states and create new budget headroom ahead of the 2026-2027 Union Budget, points out A K Bhattacharya.
The government's flagship Khelo India programme received an allocation of Rs 924.35 crore.
Budget 2026 sticks to fiscal discipline, shuns populist measures despite five key state elections coming up, but ends up rattling stock markets with a higher transaction tax on derivatives trading.
India is a global leader in software development services, IT enabled services, knowledge process outsourcing services and contract R&D services relating to software development, Sitharaman said noting these business segments are quite inter-connected with each other.
The Union Budget 2025-26 had allocated Rs 2,33,210.68 crore (BE) to the ministry helmed by Union Home Minister Amit Shah.
Enforcement agencies have highlighted risks related to money laundering and terror financing, prompting closer scrutiny of crypto platforms operating in India.
India Inc on Sunday hailed the Union Budget 2026-27 as a 'structural shift' in the country's technology landscape, noting that the government is moving beyond fragmented pilots to build foundational layers where AI serves as a 'horizontal enabler' for the entire economy.
Under FAME-II, automakers provided subsidies to electric vehicle (EV) customers at the time of purchase, with the understanding that the government would reimburse the firms later.
Shares of brokerage-related companies nosedived 18 per cent on Sunday after Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman proposed raising securities transaction tax on commodity futures to 0.05 per cent from 0.02 per cent in the Union Budget 2026-27.
Officials said the government is keen to conform to the convention of the Union Budget for 2026-2027 being presented on February 1 despite it falling on a Sunday in 2026.
Ask rediffGURU and PF expert Nitin Narkhede your mutual fund and personal finance-related questions.
Rediff explains why the system, not the Budget, is the problem.
The Indian Rice Exporter's Federation (IREF) on Tuesday urged the government to provide tax incentives, interest subvention and freight support in the upcoming 2026 Budget to strengthen the sector's competitiveness while addressing sustainability concerns.
'When markets go into a budget with excessive optimism, the risk of disappointment is higher.'
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has accused central forces of searching her car and criticised the BJP for alleged election misconduct during a rally in Islampur, Uttar Dinajpur district.
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