Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman.
Budget 2026 Expectations for Income Tax, Health, Automobile, Defense Sectors in Hindi: The country’s budget for the financial year 2026-27 is going to be presented on 1 February 2026. Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will budget for the 9th time. Like every time, the common man has many expectations from this budget.
Let us know what other sectors along with income tax, health, automobile, defense and railways can get from the budget this time?
income tax
The biggest expectation of the common man from Budget 2026 is regarding relief in income tax. In the new tax system, the tax-free income limit has already been increased to Rs 12 lakh, but due to increasing inflationary pressure, taxpayers now want the tax-free limit to be increased to Rs 15 lakh annually. Meanwhile, the future of the old tax system is also under discussion before Budget 2026. Benefits like Section 80C, Section 80D, Section 24(b) on home loan interest and NPS have not been changed for many years. After repeatedly getting relief in slabs in the new tax system, many taxpayers are now questioning whether the government will gradually abolish the old tax system or will continue it by giving some relief for the last time.
Experts believe that it may become clear in Budget 2026 whether the old tax system will be abolished or it will be allowed to run with the new system. Apart from tax slabs and exemptions, people also want easy income tax rules, quick refunds and less hassle-free process. Delay in ITR processing, glitches in AIS, TDS related problems and repeated notices have become a big problem for working people, freelancers and senior citizens.
health sector
Before Budget 2026, the demand for increasing the limit of Section 80C from Rs 1.5 lakh and increasing the exemption on health insurance in Section 80D has again arisen. Insurance premiums and medical expenses are increasing rapidly, in such a situation taxpayers want more relief. Apart from this, India’s healthcare sector is demanding more investment in infrastructure, research and new technologies to strengthen the country’s health system. According to experts, this sector expects continuous support from the government to increase the capacity of hospitals and strengthen medical education.
automobile
The Indian Electric Vehicle (EV) market is expected to get major policy support from the upcoming Union Budget. Auto companies are demanding to simplify and reduce the duty on EV parts, to give more incentives to customers to buy EVs and to strengthen manufacturing (localization) and charging infrastructure in the country.
defense sector
This time the focus of the government is clearly on making the country self-reliant. According to a recent report, important sectors like defence, critical minerals, power electronics, infrastructure and affordable housing may get special preference in Budget 2026. In view of the changing situation around the world and increasing geopolitical tension, the government is emphasizing on strengthening defense and essential resources. This is the reason why this time a large part of the Capex i.e. government expenditure is expected to be invested in these strategic sectors.
Railway
This time there may be good news for railway passengers in the budget. The central government is seriously considering restarting the ticket fare discount given to senior citizens before Corona. If this is approved in the budget, it will prove to be a big relief for elderly passengers. With this, the government can announce the operation of about 300 new trains. Special emphasis is also expected on strengthening the railway infrastructure. There is a possibility of big investment in projects like track doubling, expansion of new railway lines, modernizing the signaling system and redevelopment of stations.