‘Woefully short of the hype that was generated about it,’ says Congress on Union Budget

New Delhi: The Congress on Sunday said the Union Budget was "totally lacklustre" and fell woefully short of the hype that was generated around it.

Congress general secretary, Communications, Jairam Ramesh, said the budget speech given by Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman was also "non-transparent" as it gave no idea of the budgetary allocations for key programmes and schemes.

"While the documents need to be studied in detail, it is clear after 90 minutes that Budget 2026/27 falls woefully short of the hype that was generated about it. It was totally lacklustre," Ramesh said in a post on X.

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"The speech was also non-transparent since it gave no idea whatsoever of budgetary allocations for key programmes and schemes," he said.

In her speech, Sitharaman announced that the target for capex will be raised to Rs 12.2 lakh crore for FY27 from Rs 11.2 lakh crore earmarked for the current fiscal year.

She also announced a slew of measures to boost infrastructure in the country, including in tier-2 and tier-3 cities.

The budget came in the backdrop of global uncertainties, trade frictions and US tariffs and slowdown in exports.

This is the third budget of the BJP-led NDA government in its third term in office.

FM pegs fiscal deficit lower at 4.3 pc of GDP for 2026-27

Sitharaman said the government expects the fiscal deficit to be at 4.3 per cent of the GDP in 2026-27, lower than 4.4 per cent projected for the current financial year.

In her 2026-27 Budget speech, Sitharaman also said the government will provide Rs 1.4 lakh crore as tax devolution amount to the states in the next financial year while the net tax receipts is estimated at Rs 28.7 lakh crore.

The size of the Budget for 2026-27 is pegged at Rs 53.5 lakh crore. In 2026-27, the fiscal deficit is estimated at 4.3 per cent, the minister said as the government moves on the fiscal prudence path of debt consolidation.

The budgeted fiscal deficit, which is the difference between the government expenditure and income, for the current fiscal (April 2025 to March 2026 or FY26), is estimated at 4.4 per cent of GDP.

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The finance minister, in her 2024-25 budget speech, had stated that from 2026-27 onwards, fiscal policy would endeavour to maintain the fiscal deficit in a way that the central government debt is on a declining path as a percentage of GDP.

The general government debt-to-GDP ratio was 85 per cent in 2024, which included central government debt of 57 per cent.

A fiscal deficit of 3-4 per cent is considered comfortable and a desirable target for a growing, developing economy like India, aiming to balance economic expansion with financial stability.

In the speech on Sunday, Sitharaman also said the new Income Tax Act, 2025, will be implemented from April 1, and the rules and tax return forms will be notified shortly.