Union Budget 2025: FM Nirmala Sitharaman Presents Key Announcements

Thank you for tuning in to this live blog. For updates on the Budget 2025 presentation, click on the new LIVE blog.

Karnataka's Revenue Minister Krishna Byre Gowda, representing Chief Minister Siddaramaiah’s government, stressed the need for Rs 5,300 crore in the Union Budget for the Upper Bhadra project, aimed at supplying water to drought-prone regions of central Karnataka. 

• Continuation of rationalisation of TDS/TCS provisions and of capital gain taxation regime
• Reduction of transfer pricing compliance rigour (by extending safe harbour rules, introducing block assessment etc.)

As Western central banks begin to ease their monetary policies, Dr. Rumki Majumdar, Economist at Deloitte India, suggests that the government can enhance global liquidity by raising the investment ceiling and removing location-based restrictions.

As the Union Budget 2025-26 is set to be presented today, all eyes are on Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman to strike a careful balance between fostering economic growth and maintaining fiscal prudence.

India's strategic infrastructure development is yielding significant economic benefits, from improving trade efficiency to advancing clean energy adoption. The government’s push for modernization and sustainability has set the stage for long-term growth, reshaping key sectors and paving the way for a more resilient and eco-friendly future.

India's banking sector remains strong, with Gross Non-Performing Assets (GNPA) dropping to 2.6% and Return on Assets doubling to 1.4%. Despite Foreign Institutional Investor (FII) outflows matching COVID-19 levels, India's market capitalization-to-GDP ratio surged to 136% by December 2024, up from 124% last year, surpassing other emerging economies.

The Economic Survey highlights various PPP models supporting infrastructure development, including BOT, DBFOT, HAM, and TOT frameworks. Government initiatives like the National Infrastructure Pipeline, National Monetisation Pipeline, and PM-Gati Shakti have facilitated progress. 

The Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC) marks a transformative shift toward a decentralized and interoperable digital commerce ecosystem. By enabling seamless transactions across different platforms, ONDC fosters inclusivity, reduces customer acquisition costs, enhances business efficiencies, and expands choices for both merchants and consumers.

The Economic Survey 2025 highlights the increasing interdependence between manufacturing and the service sector, citing National Accounts Statistics.

As the Union Budget 2025 approaches, experts urge the government to go beyond incremental measures and bridge the gap between education, skilling, and employability. While previous initiatives like employment-linked skilling schemes and education loan support were encouraging, the focus should now shift towards integrating skilling into higher education.

The Economic Survey 2024-25 highlighted the government’s focus on enhancing the quality of life in rural areas for equitable and inclusive development. Key initiatives include improvements in infrastructure, rural housing, sanitation, clean fuel, social protection, connectivity, and efforts to boost rural livelihoods.

The Economic Survey, presented on Friday, highlighted the challenges faced by India’s textile exporters, particularly the complex procedures that hinder growth. Unlike competitors like China and Vietnam, Indian textile exporters are burdened by these intricate processes.

The Economic Survey's findings on work-life balance come at a time when corporate leaders are engaged in a debate on long work hours.

The Economic Survey highlihted the challenges faced by India’s textile exporters, particularly the complex procedures that hinder sector growth. Unlike competitors like China and Vietnam, Indian exporters are burdened by these intricate processes, the survey pointed out.

The Economic Survey 2024-25, tabled in Parliament on Friday, highlighted Tamil Nadu’s successful industrial promotion. It discussed the connection between state-level business reforms and industrial growth, using Tamil Nadu’s diversification into the non-leather sector as a case study.

The pre-Budget Economic Survey has raised concerns about excessive work hours in corporate India, cautioning against workweeks exceeding 60 hours. It referenced studies linking long working hours to significant health risks.

The Economic Survey 2024-25 reported a steady decline in school dropout rates but highlighted ongoing challenges in student retention at various education levels. The survey noted dropout rates of 1.9% at the primary, 5.2% at the upper primary, and 14.1% at the secondary level.

The Economic Survey, released on Friday, emphasized the importance of localizing Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to align rural development with global objectives. It praised Kerala's community-based model, which leverages strong local governance institutions, calling it a "replicable model" for SDG localization.

Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman is putting the final touches on the Modi government's first full Budget in its third term, set to be presented on February 1.

The survey highlighted a continuing digital divide, particularly impacting rural students, especially females. Data from the Comprehensive Annual Modular Survey 2022-23 revealed that 63% of males and 55% of females in rural areas can search the internet, compared to 74% of males and 69% of females in urban areas.

The report highlighted the need for collaborative efforts between the Centre, states, Union Territories, Higher Education Institutions (HEIs), and regulatory bodies to ensure the successful implementation of the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020.

India's school education system caters to 24.8 crore students across 14.72 lakh schools, with 98 lakh teachers supporting the framework. Government schools constitute 69% of all institutions, enrolling nearly half of the students and employing 51% of teachers. Meanwhile, private schools make up 22.5% of institutions, educating 32.6% of students and employing 38% of teachers.

The Economic Survey 2025, tabled in Parliament on Friday, highlights the need for India to capitalize on evolving global trade dynamics, including rising protectionism, to drive economic growth. The report noted that a proactive approach will strengthen India's position in global trade and ensure sustained progress in an increasingly competitive market.

Read here for key insights from the Economic Survey 2025!