Budget 2025 Live Updates: FM Nirmala Sitharaman’s Union Budget in focus for income tax relief, GDP growth

FM Nirmala Sitharaman will present the Union Budget 2025 as part of Parliament’s Budget session which began on January 31, 2025. The first phase of the Budget session will end on February 13, 2025. Sitharaman’s Budget 2025 speech is eagerly awaited by the middle class, common man, women and salaried taxpayers in hopes of changes in income tax slabs and income tax rates. Most tax experts expect changes in the new income tax regime to incentivise its adoption. An income tax relief for the middle class would also serve the crucial goal of boosting consumption, hence aiding economic growth.

The Economic Survey has also projected that India’s economic growth will likely slow in the upcoming financial year, though it has reiterated that India’s domestic economic fundamentals are still robust. “The fundamentals of the domestic economy remain robust, with a strong external account, calibrated fiscal consolidation and stable private consumption. We expect that the growth in FY26 would be between 6.3 and 6.8 per cent,” says the Economic Survey 2024-2025 document.

“The Indian economy is on a steady growth path. The macroeconomic health checklist looks good. As the country aims to accelerate its economic growth rate in the coming years, it has the tailwind of strong balance sheets in the domestic corporate and financial sectors,” the survey said.

Over the last few years, the Narendra Modi government has been focusing on record capital expenditure on infrastructure sectors to drive economic growth. The same approach is likely to continue, with some increase in allocations for roadways, highways and Indian Railways. Budget 2025 may also see mention of the bullet train project, introduction of modern train sets like Vande Bharat, focus on freight transport and multimodal logistics hubs, and railway station redevelopment projects.

Some other major sectors where the Budget allocation will be in focus are: defence, education, skill development, agriculture, manufacturing, healthcare, travel and tourism, technology, real estate etc. Startups and MSMEs will also find focus in Union Budget 2025. Artificial intelligence is yet another buzzword that may find important mention in the Budget speech.

While economic stimulus to boost GDP growth is key, Budget 2025 is likely to strike a balancing act, given the need to stick to the fiscal glide path. Economists and experts will look at FM Sitharaman’s fiscal deficit number projects for the coming fiscal years. This is a key indicator of economic and fiscal health.