Union Budget for 2026–27 slammed as ‘anti-farmer, anti-worker’

Presenting the Union Budget for 2026–27 in Parliament on 1 February, Union Minister for Finance and Corporate Affairs Nirmala Sitharaman said the combined budget measures demonstrated the Government’s three ‘kartavyas’ (duties) aimed at “speeding up the reform momentum towards Viksit Bharat” (the Government’s vision of transforming India into a self-reliant and prosperous economy by 2047).

The finance minister said the first kartavya is to “accelerate and sustain economic growth, by enhancing productivity and competitiveness, and building resilience to volatile global dynamics”. The second is to “fulfil aspirations of people and build their capacity, making them strong partners in India’s path to prosperity”, and the third – which is aligned with Prime Minister Modi’s vision of ‘Sabka Sath, Sabka Vikas’ (‘together with all, development for all’) – is to ensure that “every family, community, region and sector has access to resources, amenities and opportunities for meaningful participation”.

Boost to agriculture funding
In particular, Sitharaman said the Budget included “targeted efforts for increasing farmer incomes through productivity enhancement and entrepreneurship, with special attention to small and marginal farmers”.

As a result, funding for the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare would increase to ₹1,62,671 crore in 2026–27, a rise of around seven per cent compared to the previous yea. Among various measures, there would be increased funding to support the production of fibres such as silk, wool and jute, and high-value crops such as coconut, cocoa, cashew and sandalwood, “which will provide direct benefits to farmers associated with these sectors”, she explained.

The Finance Minister added that over ₹1.51 lakh crore, including states’ contributions, would be provided for the ‘Viksit Bharat G Ram G’ scheme in 2026–27. This guarantees 125 days of paid unskilled manual work per rural household annually, an increase on the 100-day paid work guarantee under the previous MGNREGA scheme.

Other Budget measures include new funding to create an ‘Industrial Corridor’ and five new tourism destinations to boost employment opportunities in five eastern Indian states – Bihar, Jharkhand, West Bengal, Odisha and Andhra Pradesh. The minister also announced ₹200 crore funding for the new Divyangjan Kaushal Yojana programme, which will provide tailored, industry-relevant skills training and high-quality assistive devices to help disabled people secure dignified livelihood opportunities in sectors such as IT, hospitality and food and drink.

Dividends of growth
Sitharaman added that “close to 25 crore individuals have come out of multi-dimensional poverty through a decade of our Government’s sustained and reform-oriented efforts”. She said the Government “is ensuring that dividends of growth reach every farmer, the scheduled caste, the scheduled tribes, the nomads, the youth, the poor and the women”.

However, opposition parties across India immediately criticised the various announcements, arguing they would fail to generate sufficient economic growth and jobs, and would instead aggravate existing economic and social inequalities.

In a post on X, Leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi, said the current economic climate situation instead meant “youth without jobs, falling manufacturing, investors pulling out capital, household savings plummeting, and farmers in distress”. He added the Budget was “blind to India’s real crises”.

Meanwhile, left-leaning political parties and trade unions lined up to reject the Government’s claim its tenure has been marked by stability, sustained growth and moderate inflation. They instead argued the only real “stability” has been persistent distress for working people, marked by unemployment and stagnant wages, while financial growth has been concentrated among corporates and the wealthy.

The left wing Communist Party of India (Marxist), known as the CPI(M), the Communist Party of India, the Communist Party of India (Marxist–Leninist) Liberation and the All India Forward Bloc (AIFB) collectively described the Budget as “anti-people, anti-worker, and anti-federal”, arguing it simply served the narrow interests of large corporates and the wealthy.

In a statement issued by its Polit Bureau, the CPI(M) argued the Budget exposed the Modi government’s continued commitment to fiscal policies that concentrate on corporate tax concessions and wealth accumulation for the rich, at the expense of working people, those on very low incomes and socially oppressed communities. The much-touted “fiscal discipline” claimed by the government merely translates to tax concessions for the rich while squeezing expenditures vital for the working population, it argued. 

Meanwhile, the All India Agricultural Workers Union (AIAWU) held a nationwide protest and strike on 2 February, accusing the BJP-led central government of systematically dismantling welfare measures for farmers, agricultural workers and the rural poor while extending sweeping concessions to corporate interests.

In a statement, the AIAWU said that despite a marginal increase in the overall size of the Budget, allocations to key social sectors had stagnated or declined in real terms, reflecting what it termed the Government’s “callous disregard for livelihoods and basic rights” amid rising inflation, unemployment and deepening rural distress.

Wage demands
The Kerala ASHA Health Workers’ Association (KAHWA) also criticised the Budget, stating it completely ignored the demands of hundreds of thousands of community-based health workers across the country, including Accredited Social Health Activists (ASHAs).

In a statement, the KAHWA slammed both the Centre and the various state governments for failing to ensure fair wages for the ASHAs, who work as healthcare providers, activists and educators among poor and marginalised rural communities. The KAHWA argued that although the ASHAs have repeatedly called for improved wages and action on their long-standing grievances about their employment conditions and rights, the Union Budget completely ignored their welfare and livelihood concerns.

Meanwhile, the farming union Bharatiya Kisan Sangh (BKS), which is an affiliate of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), the ideological mentor of the ruling BJP, said the Budget failed to live up to the Government’s pro-farmer intentions.

Another RSS affiliate, the Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh (BMS) trade union, expressed anger about the Budget’s alleged failure to boost Government and employer contributions to Provident Funds (pension schemes) and the Employees State Insurance scheme (social security fund), It also claimed the Government had failed to address wage demands from Anganwadi workers, who provide basic childcare and related health services in impoverished villages.

“Without enhancing the ceiling limits for PF, ESI and bonus, the workers will not be covered under the social security net,” it said in a statement.