Budget 2026 LIVE Updates: Important Terms You Must Know
As Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman presents the Union Budget 2026–27, understanding key budget terminology is essential.
Terms like Capital Expenditure, Fiscal Deficit, Revenue and Capital Receipts, and the Consolidated Fund reveal how the government plans to raise and spend funds.
While familiarity with direct and indirect taxes, cess and Budget Estimates helps decode the fiscal priorities and implications for businesses and citizens.
Budget 2026 LIVE Updates: How to Watch Union Budget 2026 Live Coverage
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will present her ninth consecutive Union Budget on Sunday, February 1, marking the first Sunday presentation in over a decade.
Preparations for the Budget began well in advance, which concluded with the Halwa ceremony on January 27, officially starting the Budget drafting process. The Budget Session began on January 28 with President Droupadi Murmu addressing both Houses of Parliament.
Budget 2026 LIVE Updates: HR-Tech Firms Seek Policy Push for AI Skilling, Workforce Innovation
Anish Singh, Co-founder, All Things People (ATP), said that the industry is seeking a forward-looking Budget 2026 that recognises how AI and flexible talent models are reshaping the nature of work, with policy support for HR innovation, AI-led skilling and innovation labs to boost productivity and competitiveness.
“Equally critical is the formal integration of gig and project-based workers through social security, compliance, and continuous learning support,” he asserted. He believes that these steps can help build resilient, future-ready workforces while widening employment opportunities across sectors.
Budget 2026 LIVE Updates: Tech Sector Seeks AI Incentives, Clear Rules
Annie Banik, Co-Founder & CEO, SmartWinnr, said that the industry expects the Union Budget 2026 to accelerate AI-led job creation and productivity by backing adoption across sectors with targeted incentives for research, skills and responsible deployment.
“A balanced approach that encourages innovation while safeguarding public trust can position India as a global leader in the next phase of digital transformation,” said Banik.
Clear, forward-looking data privacy and ethical AI regulations will be key to sustaining investor confidence and global competitiveness.
Budget 2026 LIVE Updates: Renewables Sector Pushes Storage, Grid Upgrades
Saurabh Kumar, Vice President, The Global Energy Alliance for People and Planet (GEAPP) India, said that the industry is looking to the Union Budget to close critical gaps in scaling renewable energy as India targets 500 GW by 2030, with a sharper focus on storage, grid efficiency and system flexibility.
“Budget allocations need to focus on Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS) in order to integrate storage with renewable energy to ensure a reliable power supply and grid stability,” Kumar stated.
He added that support for digitisation, grid-balancing technologies and decentralised renewables will be key to building a resilient clean energy ecosystem.
Budget 2026 LIVE Updates: Deep-Tech Start-ups Seek Higher Budget Support
Ankur Shrivastava, Founder and Managing Partner at Momentum Capital said, “Momentum Capital is expecting India's 2026 budget to prioritize deep-tech start-up support, especially on climate & health-tech innovation.”
He added that current non-dilutive grants of INR 10–50 lakh are insufficient for science-backed breakthroughs, and higher DST-style grants along with credit guarantees for first-of-a-kind deployments are essential to de-risk hardware innovation and scale domestic pilots.
