The Finance Minister has also made announcements for election states.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman presented her ninth consecutive Union Budget 2026 in Parliament on Sunday (February 1). Special attention was given to Bihar in Budget 2025 because elections were to be held in the state in 2025. Similarly, Budget 2021 included announcements focused on West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Assam, Kerala and Puducherry.
This time too, the budget has focused on these election states. Where voting is to be held in April this year. Announcements have been made related to textile sector, roads, rail infra and mining of rare earth metals. On the other hand, in the speech of Finance Minister Sitharaman, many announcements related to tourism and pilgrimage programs have also been made targeting these states. Let us also tell you what the election states have got from the budget?
west bengal
- To promote environment-friendly freight movement, a new dedicated freight corridor will be built from Dunkuni in the east to Surat in the west.
- Five tourist destinations will be constructed in Purvodaya states and 4,000 e-buses will be arranged.
- An integrated East Coast Industrial Corridor will be developed with a well-established hub at Durgapur.
Tamil Nadu
- Mineral-rich states of Odisha, Kerala, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu will be provided assistance in setting up critical mineral facilities.
- Seven high-speed rail corridors connecting cities will be developed, including Mumbai to Pune, Pune to Hyderabad, Hyderabad to Bengaluru, Hyderabad to Chennai, Chennai to Bengaluru, Delhi to Varanasi and Varanasi to Siliguri.
- Routes for bird watching will be developed at Pulicat Lake and in the border areas of Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh.
- He announced an expenditure of Rs 20,000 crore over the next five years to strengthen infrastructure in the second and third tier cities of Tamil Nadu, including the temple towns.
Kerala and Assam
- The Finance Minister has proposed to provide assistance to the mineral rich states of Odisha, Kerala, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu in setting up important mineral facilities.
- Along with the major nesting sites of turtles, routes for them will also be developed.
- Rs 20,000 crore has been allocated to strengthen infrastructure in tier II and III cities, including the temple towns of Assam, over the next five years.