8. Viksit Bharat and the 3 Kartavyas: Roadmap for Union Budget 2026-27

The Union Budget 2026-27, the first to be prepared in Kartavya Bhawan, signals a transformative shift by anchoring India\'s development on three \'Kartavyas\' (Duties). This Yuva Shakti-driven budget focuses on productivity-led growth, capacity building, and inclusive development to realize the vision of a developed India by 2047. • The 3 Kartavyas Framework: The budget is structured around three core pillars: (i) Accelerating and sustaining economic growth through productivity and global resilience; (ii) Fulfilling people\'s aspirations by building capacity and human capital; and (iii) Ensuring Sabka Sath, Sabka Vikas by providing equitable resource access to every community and region. • Manufacturing and Industrial Scaling: Under the first Kartavya, the government has proposed a sixpronged intervention. This includes scaling manufacturing in 7 strategic sectors (notably through Biopharma SHAKTI and ISM 2.0), rejuvenating 200 legacy industrial clusters, and establishing City Economic Regions (CERs) with a results-based financing mechanism of ₹5,000 crore per CER. • Services Sector as a Growth Engine: To achieve a 10% share in global services exports by 2047, a High-Powered ‘Education to Employment and Enterprise’ Standing Committee will be established. This body will bridge the gap between academia and industry while assessing the impact of AI on job skill requirements. • Infrastructure and Energy Continuity: Public capital expenditure has been raised to ₹12.2 lakh crore (compared to ₹2 lakh crore in FY 2014-15). Key projects include 7 High-Speed Rail corridors as \'growth connectors\' and an Infrastructure Risk Guarantee Fund to de-risk private investments in the construction phase. • Agricultural Productivity and Farmer Income: Shifting from subsidies to productivity, the budget introduces Bharat-VISTAAR, a multilingual AI tool to assist farmers. It also focuses on high-value crops (coconut, cocoa, cashew) and the integrated development of 500 reservoirs to boost fisheries and animal husbandry. • Inclusion and Human Development: Targeted efforts include the Divyangjan Kaushal Yojana for IT and hospitality training, the establishment of NIMHANS-2 in North India for mental health, and a \'girls’ hostel in every district\' mandate to support women in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) education. Key Definitions• Viksit Bharat: The vision of the Government of India to make India a developed nation by 2047, the 100th year of its independence. • Yuva Shakti: A term referring to the \'Power of Youth,\' emphasizing the role of India\'s young population in driving innovation and economic growth. • Biopharma SHAKTI: A strategy aimed at advancing healthcare through knowledge and technology, focusing on the domestic production of biologics and biosimilars. • City Economic Regions (CERs): Specialized urban zones mapped based on their specific growth drivers to leverage the economic power of urban agglomerations. Constitutional and Legal Provisions • Article 112: Mandates the presentation of the \'Annual Financial Statement\' (Budget) before Parliament. • Article 246 (Seventh Schedule): Most manufacturing, infrastructure, and strategic sectors discussed fall under the Union List (Entry 41 - Trade; Entry 52 - Industries). • New Income Tax Act, 2025: Proposed to come into effect from April 2026, aiming to simplify compliance and reduce litigation for taxpayers. • Fiscal Responsibility and Budget Management (FRBM) Act: The budget reinforces fiscal prudence with a target fiscal deficit of 4.3% of GDP for BE 2026-27. Additional Keypoints for Analysis • Reform Express: Over 350 reforms have been rolled out since August 2025, including GST simplification and the notification of new Labour Codes. • Rare Earth Corridors: To reduce critical import dependency, dedicated corridors will be established in mineral-rich states like Odisha and Kerala. • Orange Economy: Significant focus on the AVGC (Animation, Visual Effects, Gaming, and Comics) sector with content creator labs in 15,000 schools. Conclusion The Budget 2026-27 marks a paradigm shift from a scheme-based approach to a structural \'Duty-based\' (Kartavya) model. By balancing high-tech manufacturing (Semiconductors, Biopharma) with grassroots inclusion (MSME Growth Fund, Farmer AI tools), the government seeks to build a resilient economy that can navigate global supply chain disruptions while empowering its youngest citizens. UPSC Relevance • GS Paper II: Government policies and interventions for development; Welfare schemes for vulnerable sections (Divyangjan, Women, Mental Health). • GS Paper III: Indian Economy (Mobilization of resources, Infrastructure, MSMEs, Agriculture); Science and Technology (AI, Biopharma, Semiconductors). • Essay/Ethics: The concept of \'Kartavya\' (Duty) in governance and its role in national development (Viksit Bharat).