A citizen walks past a screen telecasting the Finance Minister’s speech at BSE

Maharashtra Chief Minister notes key highlights of the Budget

Addressing the Lower House, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said the government has chosen the path of reforms over rhetoric. Presenting the Budget for 2026-27 in Lok Sabha, she said India will continue to take steps towards becoming a Viksit Bharat

The finance minister also laid the 16th Finance Commission report for tax revenue devolution between the Centre and states for 2026-2031

People react to the Budget in South Mumbai

This Union Budget is Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman's 9th consecutive Budget. This takes Sitharaman closer to the record of 10 budgets that were presented by former Prime Minister Morarji Desai over different time periods

Railway porters watch the Budget on their phones at Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus (CSMT) (PIC/ASHISH RAJE)

The Ministry of Railways has been allocated a total outlay of Rs 2,93,030 crore in the Union Budget for the financial year 2026

The Finance Minister also proposed seven high-speed corridors connecting major cities, along with a new dedicated freight corridor between Dankuni in West Bengal and Surat in Gujarat

The proposed high-speed corridors include Mumbai-Pune, Pune-Hyderabad, Hyderabad-Bengaluru, Hyderabad-Chennai, Chennai-Bengaluru, Delhi-Varanasi, and Varanasi-Siliguri. Together, they will link India's financial hubs, technology centres, manufacturing clusters, and emerging cities through faster, cleaner mobility.