Mr. Sudhanshu Vats, MD, Pidilite Industries Limited-
"The Union Budget 2026 - 27 reinforces strong confidence in India's growth trajectory, anchored in manufacturing, infrastructure and consumption. The continued focus on domestic manufacturing across chemicals, electronics and capital goods strengthens supply-chain resilience and supports India's ambition to be a globally competitive production hub. With public capex at ₹12.2 lakh crore, demand across housing, construction and infrastructure-linked industries will remain robust, directly benefiting the building materials and adhesives ecosystem. The emphasis on digital infrastructure, Automation & AI-led Customs reforms and trade facilitation will enhance ease of doing business and global integration. Overall, the Budget provides the confidence to invest, innovate and scale alongside India's long-term economic vision. Onwards to a Viksit Bharat 2047."
Sammeer Pakvasa, MD & CEO of Eleganz Interiors Limited
"The Budget's emphasis on affordable housing reforms and incentives for rental homes is a positive step for India's real estate ecosystem and the commercial interiors sector. These measures are likely to accelerate construction activity while driving demand for well-planned, efficient, and human-centric spaces. For interior design and fit-out companies like Eleganz Interiors, this presents an opportunity to deliver scalable, high-quality solutions that support sustainable urban growth and meaningfully enhance the live-work experience across both residential and commercial developments."
"Tax holiday for foreign cloud and data centre providers till 2047 will primarily benefit investments that are already committed by large global players with multi-gigawatt plans in India. Domestic hyperscale entrants with integrated energy and telecom ecosystems may see advantages from input GST exemptions, but many existing Indian operators who have already deployed infrastructure are unlikely to gain comparable benefits.
Co-location alone remains a low-margin, low-employment segment with limited differentiation. India's real opportunity lies beyond simply hosting capacity, it is about becoming a strategic hub that serves the Global South from India. While Europe is enforcing strong localisation norms and Southeast Asia already has mature data centre ecosystems, the government appears to be positioning India as a regional cloud and AI export base.
India will, in any case, emerge as one of the world's major cloud markets due to its domestic demand. However, globally, there is an increasing push toward digital sovereignty, and many countries are unlikely to allow critical AI and cloud services to be delivered from outside their borders. This move does not dilute India's sovereign AI agenda; rather, it reflects an aspiration to make India a global service node while continuing to build indigenous capability."- A.S. Rajgopal, MD & CEO of NxtGen Cloud Technologies.
Budget 2026 Quote from- Dr. Aisshwarya Panddit, Founder and Celebrity Cosmetologist, Aura Edge Aesthetic
Budget 2026-27 marks a watershed moment for India's health, wellness, and beauty industries. The Finance Minister's emphasis on building a robust care ecosystem, coupled with significant investments in health infrastructure and services, creates unprecedented opportunities for our sector.
The announcement of five Medical Value Tourism Hubs in partnership with the private sector directly positions India as a global destination for wellness and aesthetic services. This initiative, combined with upgraded AYUSH facilities including three new All India Institutes of Ayurveda and enhanced certification ecosystems, validates the growing convergence of traditional wellness and modern beauty solutions.
The training of 1.5 lakh multiskilled caregivers through NSQF-aligned programs addresses our industry's critical talent gap, while the establishment of Allied Health Professional institutions in ten disciplines will create a skilled workforce essential for premium wellness and beauty services.
The focus on the 'Orange Economy' with AVGC Content Creator Labs demonstrates government recognition of digital innovation in beauty and wellness marketing. Additionally, improved ease of doing business measures—including reduced TCS rates and streamlined compliance—will significantly benefit wellness tourism and beauty product imports.
The ₹10,000 crore SME Growth Fund and enhanced MSME support through TReDS particularly empowers our sector's numerous small enterprises, from boutique wellness centers to artisanal beauty brands.
This budget's people-centric approach, combining infrastructure development with skill enhancement and entrepreneurial support, creates a fertile ecosystem for the health, wellness, and beauty sector to flourish as we march toward Viksit Bharat 2047.
Rahul Agarwal, Founder & CEO, Avani Ventures (RASA Group)
"From the Union Budget 2026–27, it's evident that the government is doubling down on infrastructure as the backbone of long-term economic growth. The ₹12.2 lakh crore allocation for transport, connectivity, and urban development clearly signals where priorities lie: building strong foundations that can support sustainable development over time.
When public spending goes beyond just building assets, it has the capability to bring the private sector on board, firing up massive projects and encouraging teamwork. All these efforts, in turn, get the economy moving and allow it to absorb any economic downturns.
The government's commitment to forward-thinking infrastructure is now the mainstay of the plan. Investments in major freight routes and multi-mode transportation networks have not only sorted out logistical problems, but have given India a real competitive edge in the global market. Well-known as the largest employer, the real estate sector may well be on the cusp of a brand-new era, with a significant boost to productivity, a chance to kickstart growth in the outer regions, and catalysing economic activity in those areas that need it most.
The renewed investment in infrastructure has the potential to be truly transformative and will provide a steady stream of momentum for both the real estate and infrastructure sectors, and push towards a more balanced and sustainable economic growth."
Samarth Setia, Founder, Rezio.ai
Budget 2026 has a few genuinely positive signals for real estate. The strongest push is to build stronger cities beyond metros through City Economic Regions (CERs)—₹5,000 crore per CER over five years—plus incentives for municipal bonds. That's a direct bet on city capacity, which is what ultimately makes Tier-2/Tier-3 markets livable and investable. The planned seven high-speed rail corridors also matter because in real estate, travel time drives value—better connectivity expands the commutable map and unlocks new, demand-led micro-markets.
On housing, the step-up in PMAY-Urban and PMAY-Urban 2.0 allocations is encouraging, and two practical friction-reducers stand out: the proposed Infrastructure Risk Guarantee Fund to speed up infra delivery and the simplification of TDS compliance for NRI resale transactions, which can shorten closure timelines.
What's missing is equally clear: there's no meaningful relief on the buyer's cost stack—EMI-side support remains limited, stamp duty remains a high dead cost, and the affordable housing definition still doesn't reflect today's metro pricing. And from a PropTech lens, the big missed opportunity is an explicit national push for Real Estate Digital Public Infrastructure—standardised property IDs and verification rails—so the market can shift from 'trust me' to 'verify by default.'
Quote From Ms. Madhumita Agrawal, Founder & CEO, Oben Electric
"The Union Budget's focus on expanding the Rare Earth Permanent Magnet Scheme and building dedicated rare earth corridors is a positive step towards reducing import dependence for critical materials used in EV manufacturing. Rare earth magnets, which are key components in electric motors, benefit directly from this initiative, and strengthening capabilities across mining, processing and advanced manufacturing will create a more reliable domestic supply base.
The India Semiconductor Mission 2.0 and the Electronics Components Manufacturing Scheme will help build domestic capabilities in semiconductors and other electronic components, strengthening the supply chain for critical EV systems and reducing dependence on imports
As electric motorcycle manufacturing scales in India, such measures are particularly relevant for manufacturers with end-to-end, in-house development and manufacturing capabilities, supporting localisation and long-term supply stability." -- said Ms. Madhumita Agrawal, Founder & CEO, Oben Electric.
Quote From Mr. Kunal Arya, Co-founder & MD at Zelio E Mobility
"India's electric two-wheeler segment has gained strong momentum, and the Union Budget 2026–27 takes a step toward scaling it into a full industrial ecosystem. Focusing on rare earth magnets and dedicated corridors in mineral-rich states is crucial to secure the materials that power electric drivetrains. Reducing customs duty on capital goods for lithium-ion batteries will help lower costs and support local manufacturing. India Semiconductor Mission 2.0 and the enhanced Electronics Component Manufacturing Scheme will strengthen supply chains, promote full-stack Indian IP, and accelerate battery and component localisation. This is pleasing to see how the government focuses on MSMEs—through credit guarantee support of ₹10,000-crore SME Growth Fund, it will further empower companies like ours to expand capacity, innovate faster, and compete globally. For Zelio, these measures provide a clear and stable pathway to scale Make in India electric two-wheelers that are affordable, reliable, and designed for mass adoption across Tier II, Tier III, and emerging markets. As the ecosystem matures, further momentum can be unlocked through targeted PLI support for battery cells and motor controllers, along with rationalisation of GST on electric two-wheelers to enhance affordability and widen consumer access." -- said Mr. Kunal Arya, Co-founder & MD of Zelio E Mobility.
Yosha Gupta, Founder & CEO, MeMeraki
The Union Budget 2026–27 brings some renewed focus to India's cultural and creative economy, from strengthening handloom and handicrafts through the Mahatma Gandhi Gram Swaraj initiative and the National Handloom and Handicraft Programme to investments in design education, AVGC skilling, and heritage digitisation. The push to modernise clusters, deepen skilling, and build global market linkages is directionally important and aligns with MeMeraki's mission of enabling master artisans engage with digital tools and global audiences. Initiatives like SHE-Marts also point to an intent to support women-led enterprise and inclusive growth.
Going forward, the real opportunity lies in aligning documentation, skills, market access, and enterprise support into a truly connected ecosystem, while also positioning craft more clearly as one of India's most powerful forms of soft power and cultural export. Greater clarity on international duties and trade facilitation for handcrafted goods would be a critical next step in enabling traditional artists, SHGs, and creative entrepreneurs to engage with scale, continuity, and sustainable livelihoods, and to enable India's rich artistic heritage to compete meaningfully in global cultural markets.
Akshay Lakhanpal, CEO India, Space Matrix
India's Budget 2026 sends a strong signal to global capability centres and multinational firms that India wants to be the world's most efficient hub for technology and services. By recognising all software development, IT-enabled services, knowledge process outsourcing and contract R&D under a single Information Technology Services category, and introducing a common safe harbour margin of 15.5% with the threshold raised from ₹300 crore to ₹2,000 crore, the government has sharply improved tax certainty and ease of doing business for GCCs and international companies looking to expand here. Safe harbour approvals moving to an automated, rule-driven system further reduce friction and subjectivity, which is exactly what long-term investors and occupiers need for confident, multi-year commitments.
For corporates, this clarity does not just shape tax planning, it shapes their workplace strategy. When high-value work is concentrated in India, boards and leadership teams can justify deeper investment in campuses, experience-led offices and collaboration spaces that support complex, tech-intensive roles. A more predictable regime encourages companies to design workplaces that are magnets for global talent: agile, amenity-rich, and aligned with ESG expectations and global compliance standards.
As a workplace design and build firm, we see this Budget as a clear green light to plan for the next wave of high-performance workplaces. When global and Indian companies have greater clarity and confidence on their India growth plans, they are more willing to invest in agile, experience-led, sustainable offices that can attract talent and support complex, technology-intensive work. We may not yet have infrastructure status for the Interior Design and Fit-out industry — and that remains a worthy aspiration — but the direction of reform is very encouraging.
This Budget strengthens India's position as the preferred destination for global work, and that is fundamentally positive for our sector, our clients and the thousands of professionals who shape the workplaces where this growth will actually be delivered.
Nilesh Aggarwal, Founder Medtalks.
The Union Budget 2026–27 signals a clear intent to strengthen India's clinical research and life sciences ecosystem. The focus on clinical trials, regulatory capacity, and biologics reflects a shift towards making India as a globally credible research destination, not just a cost-efficient one.
As this ecosystem evolves, evidence generation cannot remain limited to trials alone. Indian medical journals, continuous medical education, and real-world data will be equally important in translating research into everyday clinical practice especially in a country as diverse as India.
There is also a need to strengthen India's own platforms for scientific publishing, doctor education, and patient awareness so that India-specific evidence is generated, interpreted, and disseminated locally.
At the IJCP Group, we have been working across these areas for several years, spanning research, medical publishing, education, and patient engagement, and see this Budget as an important step towards building a more integrated, evidence-driven healthcare ecosystem.
Arjun Anjaria, Founder & CEO, Unbox Health.
The Budget reinforces the growing recognition that food safety and nutrition are central to long-term public health and economic productivity. As packaged foods and supplements become a larger part of everyday diets, consumers need clearer, more reliable information to make safe choices. Stronger labelling standards, wider access to accredited testing and consistent enforcement can help ensure that label claims reflect product reality. Platforms like Unbox Health complement this effort by independently testing products and publishing lab-backed ratings, helping consumers navigate complexity while encouraging brands to meet higher standards of transparency and compliance
Parth Amin, CEO & Co-Founder, Decode Age
"The Union Budget 2026-27 is a definitive signal that India is ready to lead the longevity revolution. For years, we have argued that the future of healthcare lies in targeting the biological roots of aging rather than just managing end-stage disease. With the launch of the Biopharma SHAKTI scheme, the government has provided the missing piece of the puzzle: a massive ₹10,000 crore commitment to the science of biologics and precision medicine.
This budget effectively ends the era of 'sick-care' and marks the beginning of a data-led, preventive era. By prioritizing advanced research infrastructure and clinical networks, the government is creating the exact ecosystem needed for companies like Decode Age to scale life-extending innovations. We are no longer just talking about longevity. We are building a future where every Indian can expect more years of peak health and productivity. The mandate is clear: it is time to shift the focus from merely surviving to truly thriving."
Dr Varun Gupta, Co-Founder, NoWound by Medvital
We welcome the Government's decision to strengthen district hospitals and expand emergency and trauma care capacity. As a Make-in-India new age medtech company, we are committed to contributing in every possible way—by enabling access to advanced, standard-of-care advanced technologies for trauma and complex wound patients, and by working closely with public hospitals to improve reach, affordability, and outcomes.
Rajesh Kumar Singh, CEO, Jyoti Structures Ltd.
The Union Budget 2026–27 provides a strong and sustained policy signal for the expansion and modernisation of India's power transmission and infrastructure ecosystem. The continued thrust on public capital expenditure, development of new Dedicated Freight Corridors, creation of city economic regions, and targeted investments to ensure long-term energy security are critical enablers for strengthening the national grid and supporting India's growing power demand. Measures such as the proposed Infrastructure Risk Guarantee Fund and accelerated asset monetisation through REITs are expected to improve financing confidence, reduce execution risks and facilitate timely completion of large-scale EPC projects. For Jyoti Structures, with a proven track record in executing extra high-voltage transmission lines, substations and turnkey grid projects across India and international markets, the Budget creates a conducive environment to support grid expansion, renewable energy integration and cross-regional connectivity, while reinforcing India's broader electrification and infrastructure development priorities.
Aditya Sanghi, CEO of Hotelogix
"The Union Budget 2026–2027 sends a clear signal that the Indian tourism and hospitality industry is one of the most important drivers of jobs and growth. Enabling this industry through initiatives such as a National Institute of Hospitality, talent upskilling, and digital infrastructure are welcome steps. However, execution on the ground will define success in the long run. It must empower homegrown midscale hotels in Tier II/III markets to access modern solutions and a skilled workforce easily to thrive sustainably. At Hotelogix, we see this as a pivotal moment to support hotels in this segment with cloud-led, scalable technology that helps them ensure smarter operations and deliver consistently better guest experiences."
Mr Chirag Agarwal, Co-founder & CEO, TravClan
The Union Budget 2026 takes a constructive step towards addressing some long-standing operational challenges faced by outbound travel businesses. The reduction of TCS on overseas tour packages to 2% is a welcome move and will ease immediate cash-flow pressure for both travellers and agents, particularly in high-volume, cross-border transactions.
Effective implementation will now be critical. Clear guidance on refund timelines, reconciliation processes and system readiness will determine how quickly this relief translates into day-to-day business operations. Beyond taxation, access to formal credit for booking-led travel businesses remains an important gap, as traditional lending frameworks still do not fully account for advance collections and extended settlement cycles.a
As outbound demand continues to expand from non-metro markets, sustained policy focus on international connectivity, efficient payment systems and regulatory simplicity will be important to support long-term growth. Overall, the Budget signals positive intent, and targeted follow-through can further strengthen the operating environment for Indian travel businesses.
Sharad Sanghi, CEO & Co-Founder, Neysa
The Union Budget 2026–27 provides much-needed structural clarity for India's AI and cloud infrastructure ecosystem. The government's proposal to club software development, IT-enabled services, knowledge process outsourcing, and contract R&D services relating to software development under a single category of information technology services, with a uniform safe harbour margin of 15.5% and an expanded eligibility threshold from ₹300 crore to ₹2,000 crore, significantly improves tax certainty for larger technology and services companies operating at scale. By moving to automated, rule-driven safe harbour approvals and enabling five-year continuity, the regime meaningfully reduces friction and compliance overheads.
Equally consequential is the proposal to offer a tax holiday until 2047 for foreign companies providing cloud services to customers outside India using data centre services based in India, along with a 15% safe harbour on cost for related Indian entities delivering those data centre services. These measures directly strengthen India's attractiveness as a hub for cloud and AI infrastructure and support the shift towards domestically hosted compute.
"For Neysa, which is focused on building cloud-native AI platforms on resilient, India-based infrastructure, these announcements create a predictable and enabling environment to help enterprises move from pilots to large-scale AI deployment. By addressing tax certainty for IT services, incentivising global cloud services anchored on Indian data centres, and encouraging fresh data centre investment together, the Budget lays a strong foundation for India's next phase of enterprise AI adoption.
Sumed Marwaha, Managing Director - AHEAD India
"The Union Budget 2026-27 rightly doubles down on India's strengths as a global digital engineering and services hub. Consolidating IT‑enabled services, KPO and contract R&D into a single information technology services category with a uniform 15.5% safe harbour margin and an enhanced ₹2,000 crore threshold brings the policy framework much closer to how large, integrated transformation programmes are actually delivered on the ground. This added clarity and predictability is critical for enterprises committing to multi‑year modernisation journeys across cloud, data and applications.
Equally important is the Budget's emphasis on cloud and data centre infrastructure from the long‑duration tax holiday until 2047 for foreign companies providing global cloud services from India‑based data centres to the 15% safe harbour on cost for related data centre entities. Together, these measures will catalyse fresh investment into high‑performance, secure, and scalable infrastructure, the foundation for cloud‑first, AI‑ready, and automation‑driven environments that modern enterprises now depend on.
For AHEAD, which helps organisations modernise core infrastructure, build custom AI‑ready platforms across cloud, core, and edge, and simplify operations through automation and observability, this Budget materially strengthens the surrounding ecosystem. It aligns policy, infrastructure, and talent towards a common objective, enabling enterprises to execute digital transformation with greater speed, reliability, and impact, while reinforcing India's position as a strategic, long‑term delivery base for global digital initiatives."
Dhruv Taneja, Founder & Global CEO, MatchLog
"The Union Budget 2026–27 delivers a visionary blueprint for India's logistics backbone, with public capex rising to ₹12.2 lakh crore, new freight corridors between Dankuni and Surat, 20 additional national waterways, coastal cargo promotion, and seven high-speed rail corridors all pointing to a clear focus on faster, greener cargo movement and last-mile connectivity. The creation of an Infrastructure Risk Guarantee Fund, dedicated REITs for CPSE real estate recycling, and a ₹5,000 crore outlay for City Economic Regions in Tier II and III cities further underline the intent to de-risk long-gestation projects and anchor logistics growth where demand is actually emerging.
Equally important are the trust-based customs and warehousing reforms and the proposed container manufacturing scheme, which can strengthen India's position in global trade flows. The next big unlock now lies in directly incentivising container reuse and reduction of empty runs, backed by data-driven frameworks for measurable emission reduction. Clear signals on technology adoption, reuse-led models, and outcome-based incentives would help scale digital platforms faster and make India's supply chains not just more efficient, but genuinely sustainable." -
Naina Aggarwal Ahuja, Founder, Talking Point Communications U/O IJCP Group
"The Union Budget 2026–27's recognition of the creator economy through the Orange Economy framework and large-scale AVGC content creator labs is a welcome step in formally acknowledging content creation and digital storytelling as part of India's skilling and services landscape. What will now be critical is sustained support beyond training, including clearer pathways for creators, platforms and institutions to build credibility, manage public engagement and scale responsibly. As this ecosystem expands, strategic communication will play a key role in shaping trust, visibility and long-term relevance."
Ankit Ahuja - Founder, Red Comet Films, U/O IJCP Group
"The Union Budget 2026–27 underlines a clear intent to strengthen India's content creation and creative ecosystem through focused support for the Orange Economy, AVGC skilling, content creator labs and digital storytelling initiatives. This approach recognises the importance of building creative capacity, nurturing talent and enabling original IP at scale. The opportunity now lies in translating these interventions into sustained collaboration between creators, studios and institutions to develop globally relevant content from India."
Agoda welcomes the Union Budget and congratulates the Government on placing travel and tourism firmly within India's next phase of growth. The Budget recognises the travel sector as a practical engine for jobs, skills, and regional participation, while responding to how traveller preferences are changing across the country.
The focus on capability-building and destination readiness stands out. Measures such as setting up a National Institute of Hospitality, upskilling guides at iconic sites, and creating a National Destination Digital Knowledge Grid show a holistic approach that combines talent, technology, and storytelling. At the same time, investments in experiential destinations, sustainable nature-based trails, cultural sites, and global wildlife engagement reflect a clear intent to broaden travel beyond large cities and enable year-round demand across emerging destinations.
Overall, the Budget sends a clear message that tourism plays a role not only in economic expansion, but also in shaping how people explore India and the world. Agoda looks forward to supporting this momentum by improving discovery, choice, and booking ease for travellers as travel across India becomes broader and more experience led.
- To be attributed to Gaurav Malik, Country Director, Indian Subcontinent & Indian Ocean Islands at Agoda.
Budget 2026–27 provides a strong and timely impetus to India's textile and manufacturing ecosystem. The proposed mega textile parks, modernisation of traditional clusters and focused support for technical and sustainable textiles will significantly enhance India's global competitiveness and export readiness. Equally important is the emphasis on logistics and infrastructure, particularly the announcement of new Dedicated Freight Corridors, including enhanced east–west connectivity linking Surat with major production and consumption centres. These measures will improve supply chain efficiency, reduce logistics costs and strengthen India's position as a reliable global sourcing destination. In all, the Budget demonstrates a long-term, integrated approach to industrial growth, employment generation and value-added manufacturing. — said Jayesh Desai, Chairman, Rajhans Group.
