Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman chaired the third pre-Budget consultation meeting with stakeholders from the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) sector on Wednesday. The meeting was part of the preparations for the upcoming Union Budget 2026-27.
What’s on the agenda
The meeting’s discussions centred on the key challenges faced by the MSME sector and measures to promote its growth and competitiveness. The meeting with MSME stakeholders was also attended by Union Minister of State for Finance Pankaj Chaudhary, the Secretary of the Department of Economic Affairs, senior officials from the Ministry of Finance, and senior officials from the Ministry of MSME.
Earlier on Monday, the Finance Minister chaired the first pre-Budget consultation meeting with the country’s leading economists. The meetings mark the beginning of the annual series of pre-Budget discussions conducted by the Finance Ministry as part of the budget preparation process.
What are pre-budget meetings?
A pre-Budget meeting is essentially a consultation and discussion process held by government finance officials and the Finance Minister with various stakeholders before the final annual budget is formulated and presented to the legislature.
The consultations serve as an important platform for the Finance Minister to gather suggestions, demands, and inputs from a wide range of participants, including industry associations, trade unions, economists, state government officials, and representatives from the social sector.
Through these discussions, the Finance Ministry aims to ensure that the Union Budget reflects diverse perspectives and addresses the needs of different sectors of the economy.
The Union Budget is typically presented on February 1 of each year. This year also, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman is likely to present the Union Budget for 2026-27 in Parliament on February 1.
