Union Budget 2025 Expectations Highlights: Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman is all set to present the Union Budget 2025 in the Lok Sabha on February 1 and the entire country, common man, business leaders, investors, are betting on a number of key announcements to be made by the FM. While as a traditional practice, the Budget will be announced on February 1, however, an official statement from the central government is still pending. February 1 this year is also falling on Saturday; while the Modi government has earlier as well followed the trend of presenting the Budget on a Saturday to facilitate smooth parliamentary discussions and avoid weekday disruptions, an official confirmation is awaited.
In terms of key demand and expectations, experts said that income tax relief is one of the major areas that the finance minister needs to look at, besides the demand for tax holidays and GST exemptions by a host of industries. Per a Deloitte report, while the government has undertaken several commendable initiatives to reform tax landscape in India, and these reforms have strengthened the foundation of the tax system, there remain opportunities for further refinement to promote ease of doing business and achieve greater administrative efficiency.
The finance minister is also facing the challenge of balancing fiscal prudence with the need to address key voter demographics. Recently, Nirmala Sitharaman finished her month-long consultations with industry and sector stakeholders that started on December 6, 2024. In a statement, the Finance Ministry said, “The consultations started on December 6, 2024. In the course of the in-person consultations, more than 100 invitees across 9 stakeholder groups, including experts and representatives from farmer associations & agriculture economists; trade unions; education & health sector; MSME; trade & services; industry; economists; financial sector & capital markets; as well as, infrastructure, energy and urban sector, participated in the meetings.”
Budget 2025 Expectations Live Updates: ICRA's outlook for Hospitality Sector
Senior Vice President and Group Head, Corporate Ratings at ICRA underlined strong recovery for India’s hospitality sector post-covid. The key factors that contributed is business travel, domestic tourism, weddings, enhanced connectivity to tier 2 and tier 3 cities and MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences, and Exhibitions). He expects that Union Budget 2025-26 should focus on infrastructure investments, ease of doing business and upgrading the connectivity for supporting sector’s growth.
Budget 2025 Expectations Live Updates: MSMEs seeks focus on THESE areas
Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) are expecting focus to be on boosting growth and streamlining operations. Some of the top priorities are to hike export incentives, expand the Production Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme to strengthen manufacturing capabilities and decrease compliance burdens, as stated by Wonderchef Co-Founder & Managing Director Mr. Ravi Saxena.
Budget 2025 Expectations Live Updates: ''Empowering women through economic inclusion''
Mamta Shekhawat, founder of Gradding.com, highlights the growing contribution of women taxpayers in India. In the financial year 2023-24, around 22 million women file tax returns, marking a major milestone in economic participation. According to her, the upcoming budget holds the potential to impact economic growth and form a sustainable future for all.
Key expectations for Budget:
Expansion of financial resources for the women
Policies to ease out financial burden on working women and encourage more female participation in the workforce.
Initiatives that focus on gender sensitive measures
Budget 2025 Expectations Live Updates: Pre-budget expectations of MSME sector
Abhishek Anand, Partner at MicroSave Consulting (MSC), emphasized the critical role of MSMEs in driving India’s economic growth ahead of the Union Budget. He stressed the need for incentivizing technology adoption, including AI, blockchain, and robotics, to enhance productivity and global competitiveness.
"Fostering innovative financing solutions like crowdfunding and supply chain financing can unlock new growth opportunities," Anand said, advocating collaboration among industry, government, and financial institutions for market access and sustainable development.
By strategically directing resources to technology and financing, the Budget can empower MSMEs to thrive in a rapidly evolving global economy, he added, positioning them as key contributors to India’s economic transformation.
Budget 2025 Expectations Live Updates: Oil marketing companies expectations from FM Sitharaman
Prashant Vasisht, Senior Vice President & Co-Group Head – Corporate Ratings, ICRA Limited, said, “The oil marketing companies expect an adequate budgetary provision to compensate for losses incurred on the sale of auto fuels and sensitive products -LPG and kerosene. The upstream industry has been demanding a downward revision in the cess on crude oil production and the exemption of exploration and development activities, cost petroleum, profit petroleum and royalty from the levy of GST. Also, the midstream industry wants the customs duty of 2.5% on liquified natural gas (LNG) imports to be scrapped, which would promote the use of natural gas as a fuel. The GST on regasification of LNG remains high, at 18% and there is a request from industry to the Government to reduce the GST rates.”
The Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) and National Stock Exchange (NSE) will operate on February 1, 2025, despite the date falling on a Saturday.
This decision has been made in light of the Union Budget presentation, which is anticipated to significantly influence market movements.
A circular released by the exchanges confirmed that live trading sessions will take place on Budget Day.
Budget 2025 Expectations Live Updates: Bachpan Play School on upcoming union budget
Ajay Gupta, Founder & CEO, Bachpan Play School, said, “As we approach the pre-budget discussions for 2025, it is encouraging to witness our country’s ongoing and concerted efforts to reform the educational landscape. As an edupreneur, this progress greatly reassures me, especially given the promising developments we've experienced in recent years. With the implementation of NEP 2020 and the launch of the PARAKH Rashtriya Sarvekshan 2024 at the forefront, the anticipation for further transformation in our education sector is palpable.”
Budget 2025 Expectations Live Updates: Oben Electric on upcoming union budget
Dinkar Agrawal, Founder, CTO & COO, Oben Electric, said, “The Union Budget 2025 is a critical opportunity to address key challenges in India’s EV transition. To achieve the ambitious target of 30% EV penetration by 2030, it’s crucial to tackle both manufacturing and consumer-centric challenges. Simplifying the GST structure with a uniform 5% tax across EVs, components, and charging infrastructure is essential to reducing costs and fostering growth. Additionally, resolving the inverted GST structure on raw materials will ease working capital pressures and encourage sustainable manufacturing.”
Budget 2025 Expectations Live Updates: 63SATS on upcoming union budget
Neehar Pathare, MD, CEO, and CIO, 63SATS, said, “As India strides forward in its digital journey, the Union Budget 2025 must position cybersecurity as a cornerstone of our growing digital economy. With cyber threats escalating, enhanced government support, innovation-driven policies, and significant investments in cybersecurity infrastructure are paramount. Beyond BFSI and Critical Infrastructure sectors, stringent cybersecurity frameworks must extend to other industries, ensuring robust protection of our nation’s digital assets. SMEs, particularly vulnerable to cyberattacks, need targeted assistance to adopt affordable and effective cybersecurity solutions, safeguarding their growth and fuelling the broader economy.
Budget 2025 Expectations Live Updates: Gobind Sugar Mills on upcoming union budget
Alok Saxena, Executive Director, Gobind Sugar Mills, a unit of Zuari Industries, said, “As we await the Union Budget 2025, we strongly encourage the government to introduce initiatives that support sustainability and innovation in the sugar, power, and ethanol sectors. At Zuari Industries, we see immense opportunities in renewable energy and biofuels, which can drive both economic growth and environmental progress. We also urge the government to review sugar import and export policies to create a balanced approach that meets the needs of domestic stakeholders while tapping into international market opportunities. Supporting sugar exports and managing imports during peak seasons can help stabilize the industry.”
Abhishek Narayan, Co-founder & Director, Growing Pro Technologies, said, "As we look forward to the year 2025, the year marks an important milestone for us. This year our goal is to invest strategically and expand our capabilities. With the rise in technological advancement, our expectations from budget 2025 are to strengthen the IT sector with the apt digital infrastructure and focus on cyber security & skill advancement to continue leading globally in the technology space. Additionally, for SMEs and MSMEs it is significant to introduce streamlined regulatory frameworks and incentives to continue to serve as pivotal drivers of economic growth."
Budget 2025 Expectations Live Updates: Zuari Insurance Brokers on upcoming union budget
Rajesh Kakkar, Business Head & Principal Officer, Zuari Insurance Brokers Ltd, said, "GST reduction or waiver on health and term insurance products is critical to making these offerings more affordable and expanding coverage for the uninsured population. Additionally, the IRDAI should enhance the product bandwidth for Point of Sales (POS) through intermediaries, which will drive greater insurance penetration and create employment opportunities. Furthermore, tax benefits for life insurance and other financial products must be included under the new tax regime, encouraging higher investments in these essential avenues.
Initiatives like Bima Sugam, Bima Vahak, and Bima Vistaar would further the reach towards much broader adoption. It is important to create awareness in under-served markets while providing easier online access to insurance schemes, especially in rural areas. At Zuari Insurance Brokers Ltd., we shall seek to work towards the vision of the government increasing insurance penetration to 4.5% of GDP by 2034.
Budget 2025 Expectations Live Updates: Reduction in GST on education services is essential, says Shaalaa.com
Anthony Fernandes, Founder, Shaalaa.com, said, "As we approach the Union Budget, key focus areas must include steps to empower education and bridge digital gaps. A reduction in GST on education services is essential to make quality learning more affordable and accessible, especially for middle-class families. Additionally, targeted investments in rural internet infrastructure are critical to bringing underserved communities into the digital economy, enabling them to participate in new-age learning and employment opportunities.”
Budget 2025 Expectations Live Updates: Zee Learn on upcoming union budget
Anish Shah, Chief Financial Officer, Zee Learn Limited, said, "In the coming year, the education sector in India is poised for significant growth and development, driven by the implementation of NEP 2020 and the increasing adoption of online and digital education. NEP stresses the importance of foundational literacy and numeracy, hence there will be more impetus. A substantial increase in the education budget is essential to address educational institutions' scarcity of human resources. Collaboration between educational institutions and edtech entities can extend digital education to the masses, offering programs, upskilling courses and employment opportunities.
Budget 2025 Expectations Live Updates: Daltin AI Portal on upcoming union budget
Daljeet Sandhu, CEO of Daltin AI Portal, said, "With the Union Budget 2025 approaching, there is an urgent need to address key financial barriers for Indian students pursuing education abroad by reducing the Tax Collected at Source (TCS) on foreign remittances for education from 20% to 5% would significantly ease the financial strain on families managing high overseas expenses. Increasing GDP allocation towards education to at least 6%, as recommended by the NEP, can enable greater investments in scholarships and support schemes for international education. Subsidizing interest rates on student education loans will further ensure affordability and reduce long-term debt burdens.”
Budget 2025 Expectations Live Updates: Unocoin on upcoming union budget
Sathvik Vishwanath, CEO and Founder, Unocoin, said, “The 2025 Union budget is expected to address strategic reforms in several key sectors. In cryptocurrencies, there is a call to align tax loss mitigation provisions to support market sentiment. The creation of a dedicated cryptocurrency regulatory body by 2025 is expected to offer clearer oversight. In fintech, initiatives are expected to strengthen digital infrastructure and simplify access to credit. The electric car sector expects increased political support, including the state of infrastructure for charging stations.”
Budget 2025 Expectations Live Updates: STEMROBO Technologies on upcoming union budget
Rajeev Tiwari and Mr. Anurag Gupta, Co-Founders of STEMROBO Technologies, said, “We believe that the Union Budget 2025-26 can play a key role in addressing gaps in the education sector. While the FY 2024-25 allocation of Rs 73,498 crore for School Education was a positive move, there are still significant gaps, especially in rural and semi-urban areas, where access to high-speed internet, digital devices, and smart classrooms is still limited. We urge the government to dedicate funds to improve infrastructure, like high-speed internet and digital tools, in schools. It is very important to invest in teacher training programs that focus on new technologies like AI, coding, and robotics.”
Budget 2025 Expectations Live Updates: Sunstone education on upcoming union budget
The last year's budget saw a 7.99% increase, reaching Rs 47,620 crore. The allocation for Central Universities rose by 29%, while NITs and IIEST received a 5% boost. In addition to increased funding for higher education, the budget introduced initiatives such as education loans, an updated skill loan scheme, and a youth internship program.
“We hope that the Budget 2025 prioritises accountable education by enhancing access, quality, and skill development. Key focus areas include increasing funding for educational infrastructure, improving teacher training, and updating curricula to align with industry needs,” Ashish Munjal, Co-Founder and CEO, Sunstone, said.
Budget 2025 Expectations Live Updates: EY India on upcoming union budget
Ernst & Young (EY) India outlined a roadmap for sustained economic growth, emphasising the need for fiscal consolidation, tax simplification and investment-led development.
According to the global consulting firm, strategic reforms in the upcoming budget could set the stage for India’s long-term economic prosperity. Key recommendations included prioritising increased public expenditure, reducing the fiscal deficit and incentivising private sector investments.
EY India also advocates for targeted tax reforms aimed at fostering business innovation and simplifying the tax system, which could enhance the ease of doing business and attract global investors.
Budget 2025 Expectations Live Updates: MSMEs seek focus compliance relief, export incentives, and boosting consumer spending
Ravi Saxena, Co-Founder & Managing Director, Wonderchef, said, “MSMEs are urging the Union Budget 2025-26 to prioritize reduction in compliance burdens, enhancing export incentives and expanding the PLI scheme to drive manufacturing growth. The industry also seeks tax reforms and better access to essential inputs like steel, aluminium and plastics. Speedier dispute resolution mechanisms are critical for improving competitiveness and unlocking Indian business potential in domestic and global markets. However, the declining share of consumer spending in GDP is a pressing concern that demands attention. A strong focus on boosting consumer spending can stimulate demand across industries, encouraging production, investment, and job creation.”
Budget 2025 Expectations Live Updates: ‘Budget FY26 expected to prioritize infrastructure and construction as key drivers of economic growth’
Nirmalya Chatterjee, Country VP and MD, Nemetschek Group - Indian Subcontinent, said, “The Union Budget FY26 is expected to prioritize infrastructure and construction as key drivers of economic growth, with a focus on increased investments and technological integration. A projected 25-30% rise in infrastructure outlay could address existing execution lags while creating multiplier effects across sectors. Notably, the National Infrastructure Pipeline (NIP) targets investments worth Rs 111 lakh crore by 2025, and a continued thrust in FY26 will be essential to bridge the infrastructure gaps, especially in transportation, urban infrastructure, and smart cities.”
He further added that technology integration remains critical for driving efficiency, sustainability, and cost optimization in construction.
“To meet India’s $5 trillion economy vision, investments in sustainable infrastructure and technology-driven construction must align with fiscal policies that encourage private participation and innovation. Budget FY26 has the opportunity to position India as a global leader in infrastructure development through forward-looking policies and tech-enabled execution frameworks,” he concluded.
Budget 2025 Expectations Live Updates: How can Budget 2025 help growth of pharma industry?
The Indian pharmaceutical industry is at a pivotal moment, and poised for growth, targeting $120–130 billion by 2030 and $450 billion by 2047. This will position India among the top 5 innovators and No 1 in volume. To achieve this, Sudarshan Jain, Secretary General, Indian Pharmaceutical Alliance, said that the Union Budget should prioritize innovation, ease of doing business, and policies that strengthen the Life Sciences Ecosystem.
“It would be encouraging if the Union Budget allocates at least 10% of the National Research Fund to life sciences, reinstates 200% weighted deductions for R&D expenditure, and expands the patent box regime to include income from patents abroad. Additionally, removing Section 194R related to marketing samples would ease business operations. Further, incentives for AI research in the pharmaceutical sector should be introduced, building on AI Centers of Excellence and medical device training from Budget 2023,” he said.
Budget 2025 Expectations Live Updates: Towards a ‘Viksit Bharat’
Rahul Garg, Founder & CEO, Moglix, said, “The Union Budget 2025 presents a defining opportunity to establish India as a global manufacturing and economic leader while advancing the vision of a Viksit Bharat. Empowering the startup ecosystem, which drives innovation, employment, and economic growth, must remain a top priority. Measures such as extending incentives, simplifying regulations, and enhancing funding opportunities can unlock growth across sectors like manufacturing, e-commerce, and supply chains.
For MSMEs and the manufacturing sector, resolving structural challenges, rationalizing tariffs on key raw materials, and investing in logistics and port infrastructure are critical to boosting export potential. Additionally, skill development initiatives focusing on emerging technologies like AI, robotics, and advanced manufacturing can create a future-ready workforce aligned with global demands.”
Budget 2025 Expectations Live Updates: ICRA says Budget 2025 to have a strong farm sector focus
Girishkumar Kadam, Senior Vice President & Group Head - Corporate Ratings, ICRA Limited, said, “With the background of the GoI’s efforts to improve farm incomes, the FY2026 Budget is expected to have a strong farm sector focus. The last few months have witnessed an increase in some of the raw material as well as finished fertiliser prices in the P&K fertiliser segment, resulting in additional packages being offered for DAP. In the urea segment, the pooled gas prices have remained largely steady. Thus, the overall subsidy requirements for FY2026 for the fertiliser sector are expected to slightly inch up from FY2025 levels to around Rs 1.7 lakh crore. ICRA also expects the GoI to develop a roadmap to increase the balanced use of fertilisers in the country and reduce dependence on particular fertilisers.”
Budget 2025 Expectations Live Updates: Bets on enhancement of financial inclusion
Amit Bansal, Founder, BharatLoan, said, “We look forward to the upcoming Union Budget with anticipation for policies that will further enhance financial inclusion. With the growing demand for easy access to loans, especially in underserved markets, we are hopeful the government will focus on improving digital infrastructure and regulatory support. Measures that simplify the lending process, reduce operational costs and foster innovation will empower platforms like ours to reach more customers. We are optimistic that this budget will strengthen the fintech ecosystem, enabling affordable credit solutions for the broader population.”
Budget 2025 Expectations Live Updates: How can Budget 2025 address challenges faced by affordable housing segment?
Kaushal Agarwal, Co-Founder & Director, The Guardians Real Estate Advisory, said, “We believe that the upcoming Union Budget 2025-26 has the potential to prioritize policies that promote growth in the real estate sector. It also presents an opportunity to address the challenges faced by affordable housing, which has declined in recent years. Reinstating the Credit-Linked Subsidy Scheme and offering tax holidays for developers could drive project development, and raising the home loan interest deduction limit would further support housing affordability. Other priorities should also include infrastructure development, urban land reforms, and the introduction of a single-window clearance system. Additionally, improving liquidity for developers and introducing incentives to attract both domestic and foreign investments is also important.”
Budget 2025 Expectations Live Updates: What are the oil marketing companies expecting from FM Sitharaman?
Prashant Vasisht, Senior Vice President & Co-Group Head - Corporate Ratings, ICRA Limited, said, “The oil marketing companies expect an adequate budgetary provision to compensate for losses incurred on the sale of auto fuels and sensitive products -LPG and kerosene. The upstream industry has been demanding a downward revision in the cess on crude oil production and the exemption of exploration and development activities, cost petroleum, profit petroleum and royalty from the levy of GST. Also, the midstream industry wants the customs duty of 2.5% on liquified natural gas (LNG) imports to be scrapped, which would promote the use of natural gas as a fuel. The GST on regasification of LNG remains high, at 18% and there is a request from industry to the Government to reduce the GST rates.”
Budget 2025 Expectations Live Updates: Will Budget announce allocations to enhance sustainability in packaging sector?
Mihir Banerjee, Secretary General, Plastics Packaging Research & Development Centre, (PPRDC), said, “As the Union Budget 2025-26 approaches, the Plastics Packaging Research & Development Centre (PPRDC) urges the government to prioritize allocations that enhance sustainability within India's rapidly growing packaging sector, which was valued at USD 22.8 billion in 2022 and is projected to reach USD 36.29 billion by 2032.”
PPRDC's key recommendations, he said, include providing tax benefits for eco-friendly materials, subsidies, and interest subventions for advanced recycling facilities, along with reducing GST on recycling machinery and the conversion costs of recycled granules. “Additionally, the government should allocate funds for R&D in sustainable packaging and introduce production-linked incentives (PLI) for biodegradable alternatives. Further support, such as a 20% subsidy on recycling equipment and allowing CSR investments in recycling infrastructure, could encourage private sector involvement and lower barriers for smaller entities,” he added.
PPRDC also recommended increased funding for Urban Local Bodies to establish automatic segregation plants and promote public awareness of solid waste management.
Budget 2025 Expectations Live Updates: Expectations from VC/PE industry
Gopal Jain, Managing Partner, Gaja Capital, said, “We expect a growth oriented budget that brings reform to the front burner and balances structural development in the economy and welfarist direct giving. The VC/PE industry hopes that the budget will combine tax and domestic capital formation measures to make India a preferred destination as well as create a strong base for the industry.”
Budget 2025 Expectations Live Updates: NSE, BSE to remain open on Budget Day
On the Budget Date, which is a Saturday, Indian equity markets will remain open. This will be a special trading session by the exchanges. The trading will be conducted by the exchanges on segments like equity, commodity, commodity derivatives, equity derivatives, etc.