By Our Correspondent
NEW DELHI: ‘Union Budget 2026-27’ is a forward-looking, youth-centric, pro-people and employment-oriented budget. Union Education Minister Shri Dharmendra Pradhan has thanked Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi and Finance Minister Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman for presenting a people-oriented budget to fully harness India’s growth potential, ensure the overall development of all sections of the people and realize the dream of ‘Developed India’. He said that this budget will accelerate the economic growth of Eastern India, especially Odisha.
Addressing a press conference on the budget in New Delhi, Shri Pradhan said that this Developed India Budget, inspired by the three pillars of ‘accelerating economic growth, fulfilling the aspirations of all and enhancing empowerment, and providing resources, opportunities and facilities to every family and community’, will bring about all-round development in all sectors. The Budget has emphasised the mantra of Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas, which will particularly benefit the poor and middle class families. It will accelerate the pace of ‘Reform Express’ for India’s next phase of growth and ensure the benefits of over 140 crore Indians.
He said that the education sector has been increased by 8 percent in the current budget. An allocation of Rs 1,39,280 crore has been made in this sector. ‘Biopharma Shakti’ with an allocation of Rs 10,000 crore for the next 5 years and ‘India Semiconductor 2.0’ with an allocation of Rs 40,000 crore have been launched. ‘Mahatma Gandhi Gram Swaraj’ campaign has been announced for the development of labour-intensive textile industry and khadi-handicrafts. A growth fund of Rs 10,000 crore has been created to strengthen the MSME sector. A proposal has been made to form an ‘Education through Employment and Entrepreneurship’ (ETE) standard committee to make the youth employable. ‘AVGC’ (Animation, Gaming) labs will be set up in 15,000 secondary schools and 500 colleges in the country. One hostel will be built in each district to help students in STEM education. TCS rate on remittances abroad for education and medical purposes has been reduced from 5% to 2%. In this budget, the budget for infrastructure development has been increased from Rs 11 lakh crore to Rs 12.2 lakh crore, which will broaden the path of progress of the country. Along with 7 high-speed rail corridors in the country, a ‘National Institute of Hospitality’ will be set up to develop tourism. Three new All India Institutes of Ayurveda (AIIA) will be set up in the health sector. This budget will help in building a prosperous and strong India overall. A state like Odisha will especially benefit from this budget.
Shri Pradhan said that the development of Odisha has been given top priority in this budget. The Union Budget 2026-27 has provided a strong blueprint for making Odisha the economic hub of Eastern India. The development of National Waterway No. 5 from Talcher-Angul to Paradip-Dhamra through Brahmani and Mahanadi and the establishment of a new ‘Rare Earth Corridor’ in the state will take Odisha’s industrial and mineral infrastructure to a new level. The ‘East-Coast Development Corridor’ for the eastern states, the new freight corridor connecting Danakuni to Surat in the east, will create huge employment and trade opportunities in the industrial sector of Odisha. The establishment of the National Institute of Design in Eastern India will give a boost to the growth of the state. There is also a lot of potential for the establishment of NIPOR in Odisha.
This budget is a pro-people budget that focuses on the common man, farmers, women, youth, tribals and all sections of the people of Odisha. Reducing the TCS rate from 5% to 2% for kendu leaf vendors and providing special assistance for coconut, cashew and cocoa cultivation in coastal areas shows the government’s commitment to the welfare of the poor and farmers. By connecting women self-help groups and fishermen organizations with the market through startups, fish farming in coastal areas will be strengthened. This step will increase the income of our fishing brothers and sisters and further strengthen the blue economy. It will create new employment opportunities in the coastal areas of Odisha. Projects like ‘Turtle Trails’ in places like Gahirmatha on the coast of Odisha will give a new identity to the state’s tourism industry and strengthen the economy, said Shri Pradhan.
