Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Sunday presented her ninth consecutive Union Budget, saying it was guided by three “kartavyas” or core responsibilities aimed at accelerating and sustaining economic growth.
She underlined that the government’s broader “sankalp”, or resolve, remains centred on the poor, the underprivileged and disadvantaged sections of society.
Sitharaman said the economic roadmap would rest on three pillars: faster growth, inclusive development and continued structural reforms, as the government looks to balance expansion with stability.
While several policy announcements in the Budget are expected to bring down prices of a range of goods, individual income taxpayers did not see the relief many had hoped for, with no major changes announced in tax rebates or the standard deduction.
What gets cheaper and costlier in the Budget:
Cheaper
| Overseas tour packages | TCS cut from 5–20% to 2% |
| Overseas education & medical remittances (LRS) | TCS reduced from 5% to 2% |
| Tendu leaves, liquor scrap, and certain minerals | TCS cut from 5% to 2% |
| Shoe upper exports | Duty-free import benefit |
| Energy transition equipment, solar glass inputs | BCD exempt |
| Capital goods for critical minerals, lithium-ion cells | BCD exempt |
| Civilian aircraft MRO components | BCD exempt |
| Microwave ovens, personal-use imports | BCD reduced from 20% to 10% |
| Rare & cancer disease drugs | BCD exempt |
| Fish caught by Indian fishermen, nuclear power goods | BCD exempt |
| Textile & leather exports | Export realisation period extended to 1 year |
| Bio-gas blended CNG | Excise duty exemption in the calculation |
| Certain unexplained income penalties | Tax rate reduced from 60% to 30% |
| Agriculture & food items | Makhana and roasted nuts duty cut from 150% to 30% Almonds and walnuts see duty reductions Seeds and spores for sowing: BCD cut from 30% to 15% |
| Key minerals & industrial inputs | Lower or nil duty on graphite, quartz, coal, sand, silicon, rare-earth metals, metal oxides |
| Phosphoric acid | BCD cut from 7.5% to 5% |
| Solar glass chemical (sodium antimonate) | Duty reduced to nil |
| Leather sector (wet blue leather) | Zero import duty |
| Petroleum crude | Duty changed from 5% ad valorem to Re 1 per tonne |
Costlier
| Income tax misreporting | 100% penalty of the tax amount plus tax and interest |
| Stock options (STT) | Increased to 0.15% |
| Futures trading (STT) | Raised from 0.02% to 0.05% |
| Alcoholic liquor, minerals, scrap sales | TCS increased from 1% to 2% |
| Umbrellas & umbrella parts | Floor import price introduced |
| Cranberries & blueberries | Increased to 5% and 10% respectively |
| Cranberry products | Increase to 10% |
| Potassium hydroxide | Duty raised from nil to 7.5% |
| Refrigerated containers | Duty increased to 5% |
| Chewing tobacco, jarda, gutkha | NCCD hiked from 25% to 60% |
| Coffee machines | Coffee roasting, brewing or vending machines for use in the manufacture or processing of coffee |
Discover the latest Business News, Sensex, and Nifty updates. Obtain Personal Finance insights, tax queries, and expert opinions on Moneycontrol or download the Moneycontrol App to stay updated!
Find the best of Al News in one place, specially curated for you every weekend.
Stay on top of the latest tech trends and biggest startup news.
