Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman launched a strong attack on Rahul Gandhi and the Congress party, accusing them of compromising India's interests on the world stage and selling out farmers and the poor during their time in power.
The 16th Finance Commission, led by Arvind Panagariya, has recommended maintaining the states' share in central taxes at 41% for the five-year period starting April 1, 2026. The government has accepted this recommendation, with Rs 1.4 lakh crore allocated to states for FY 2026-27 as Finance Commission Grants.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday said the Union Budget 2025-26 continues efforts to accelerate growth and provide inclusive development.
India's net direct tax collections increased by 5.12 per cent to over Rs 23.40 lakh crore in the 2025-26 fiscal year, but this figure still fell short of the revised budget target of Rs 24.21 lakh crore, primarily due to income tax cuts implemented earlier in the year.
India's economy registered a robust 7.7 per cent growth in the fiscal year 2025-26, an increase from 7.1 per cent in the previous year, with the January-March quarter alone seeing a 7.8 per cent expansion.
The proposed overhaul of popular H-1B visa regime may result in higher operational costs and shortage of skilled workers for the $110-billion Indian outsourcing industry.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman met with bank heads to discuss the risks associated with Artificial Intelligence (AI) following global concerns about Anthropic's Mythos model and its potential threat to financial systems' data security.
On Saturday, February 1, 2025, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman presented a record Budget in the 8th Lok Sabha.
So tell us, does Sitharaman's 7th consecutive Budget deserve cheers or boos?
This will be the first full-year Budget of the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance government since it came to power for a third consecutive term in July last year.
In the third reshuffle since coming to power, Prime Minister Modi raised the strength of his Council of Ministers from 73 to 76.
The NDA government has gradually nuanced its position on the issue of demographic challenge.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Friday said the world is facing "profound imbalances" in trade and energy security, and is undergoing a structural transformation, with India standing out as a 'stabilising force' that can withstand external shocks.
'Global uncertainty is something which definitely occupies the minds of officials when we are preparing for the Budget.'
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced a fiscal deficit target of 4.3% of GDP for FY27, continuing the path of fiscal consolidation. The government aims to reduce the debt-to-GDP ratio to 55.6% by BE 2026-27 and further to around 50% by March 2031.
In a scathing attack on the Congress, Defence Minister Niramala Sitharaman on Monday alleged that the opposition party was "knowingly" misleading people over the Rafale jets' pricing.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Sunday proposed to increase the outlay on electronics manufacturing to Rs 40,000 crore in the 2026-27 fiscal year.
New Delhi 'will have to take a call which supply source suits us the best,' the finance minister said, pointing out that crude oil accounts for the bulk of India's foreign exchange spend.
The Lokpal, India's anti-corruption ombudsman, has been allocated Rs 30 crore in the Union Budget 2026-27. The Central Vigilance Commission (CVC) has been allocated Rs 54.56 crore.
rediffGURUS Mihir Tanna, Vipul Bhavsar, T S Khurana, Vivek Lala and Anil Rego will answer your tax queries related to the Union Budget 2026-2o27.
Sitharaman in her budget speech said that the customs proposal "aim to further simplify the tariff structure, support domestic manufacturing, promote export competitiveness, and correct inversion in duty".
Industrialist Anil Ambani has approached the Supreme Court seeking a court-facilitated debt resolution similar to the one provided to Sterling group's Nitin and Chetan Sandesara, and five other members of their families.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Sunday announced an increase in the Securities Transaction Tax (STT) on Futures and Options trade with a view to discouraging small investors from speculative trading in derivatives, which led to a sharp decline in the stock market.
Harivansh has been re-elected as the Deputy Chairman of Rajya Sabha unopposed, marking his third term in the position.
Fino Payments Bank asserts its compliance with GST regulations following the arrest of its MD and CEO, Rishi Gupta, by the Directorate General of GST Intelligence (DGGI). The bank clarifies that the investigation pertains to program managers associated with multiple banks and not the bank's own GST compliance.
The government's flagship Khelo India programme received an allocation of Rs 924.35 crore.
The BJP has made significant gains in the Kerala Assembly elections, securing three seats and marking a potential breakthrough in a state where it has traditionally struggled.
Here are the key numbers to watch out for in the Union Budget for 2025-26:
The government aims to initiate "transformative reforms" across six domains, including taxation and financial sector, in Union Budget 2025-26, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said on Saturday.
Around 24 paise will come from borrowings and other liabilities, 10 paise from non-tax revenue like disinvestment, and 2 paise from non-debt capital receipts, the Budget documents showed.
Highlights of the Economic Survey 2025-26
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Tuesday expressed anguish over not being allowed to learn Hindi in Tamil Nadu as a student and was even mocked on the streets for attempting to learn the language.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman is cutting short her official visit to the US and Peru and will depart for India at the earliest, following the terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir. Sitharaman arrived in the US on Sunday for a six-day visit, after which she was scheduled to travel to Peru for a five-day trip. The decision comes after 26 people were killed in a terror attack near Kashmir's Pahalgam town on Tuesday.
So tell us, does Sitharaman's budget deserve cheers or boos?
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Sunday proposed to reduce the tax collection at source (TCS) rate to 2 per cent for education and medical purposes under Liberalised Remittance Scheme (LRS) as well as on sale of overseas tour program package.
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.
Amidst global energy market volatility driven by the West Asia crisis, Russia has proposed increasing its crude oil and natural gas supplies to India, strengthening bilateral energy ties and aiming for USD 100 billion in annual trade by 2030.
Gold and silver prices plunged up to 9 per cent in futures trade on Sunday, hitting their lower circuit levels ahead of the Union Budget for 2026-27, as investors extended profit booking after the recent record-breaking rally.
Capex, infrastructure development, and prudent fiscal management are the key focus areas in the Budget, says Nilesh Shah.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi convened a meeting with senior ministers to assess the impact of the evolving situation in West Asia on India's crude oil, gas, petroleum, power, and fertiliser sectors, focusing on ensuring uninterrupted supply and stable logistics.
