- Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman to present her ninth consecutive Budget today
- She posed with the Budget tablet outside Kartavya Bhavan before heading to Rashtrapati Bhavan
- Sitharaman wore a handwoven Kanjivaram silk sari honoring Tamil Nadu's weaving heritage
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, set to present a record ninth straight Budget, posed with the tablet containing the all-important document in a red sleeve outside Kartavya Bhavan, which houses the Ministry of Finance.
The finance minister was wearing a handwoven Kanjivaram silk sari, honouring Tamil Nadu's weaving legacy. The move continues a tradition of championing the country's various handloom traditions, from Mangalgiri and Ikat to Bomkai, Kantha and Madhubani, while presenting the Budget. The choice of a saree from Tamil Nadu is also being seen as a signal ahead of the Assembly elections in the state.
From the finance ministry, Sitharaman left for the Rashtrapati Bhavan, where she called on President Droupadi Murmu.
This year will be the first time in independent India that the Budget will be presented on a Sunday. This is being done to continue with the February 1 date for Budget presentation, which was introduced in 2017. The BSE and the NSE are also open for trading on a Sunday, only the second time this has ever happened.
In a big break from tradition, the finance minister is expected to use Part B of the Budget speech to outline a vision for India's economic future. This time, Part B is expected to outline both short-term priorities and long-term goals as India enters the second quarter of the 21st century, highlighting the country's local strengths and global ambitions, sources said.
In past Budgets, most of the substance lay in Part A, while Part B was restricted largely to tax and policy announcements.
With India having achieved a fiscal consolidation roadmap with a deficit below 4.5 per cent of GDP in fiscal 2026, markets will keenly watch for direction on debt-to-GDP reduction in the Budget for the 2026-2027 financial year.
The government's planned capital expenditure for this fiscal was a record Rs 11.11 lakh crore and is expected to go up by 10-15 per cent. This will signal the government's focus on infrastructure and capacity building as the private sector remains cautious with investments.
Markets will also closely watch the roadmap the finance minister lays out to help boost India's exports in view of the impact of the US' 50% tariffs on India and Donald Trump's unpredictability on the issue. Another key focus area is expected to be artificial intelligence, given both its outsized potential to boost the economy and its impact on jobs.
