Union Budget 2026-27: These ‘reforms’ are elitist and pro-business |
Both the Union Budget 2026 and the Economic Survey repeatedly mention ‘reforms’. Every chapter of the survey uses the word, while Prime Minister Narendra Modi insists that ‘today, India is riding Reform Express’. What exactly does the word mean? Does it have a narrow connotation based on the policymaker’s belief or is it something wider?
The survey highlights the reforms already underway — production-linked incentives (PLI), liberalised foreign direct investment (FDI), logistics modernisation, tax simplification, digital infrastructure rollout, labour law changes, skilling drives, improved female workforce participation, infrastructure expansion and easier entry-exit norms for businesses. It’s an impressive list, credited for recent economic growth and lifting potential GDP growth to 7 per cent.
But are these reforms really delivering the goods?
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has repeatedly flagged that India’s GDP data lacks credibility. It has pointed to many flaws in India’s methods of measuring its economy, most importantly in the informal sector. The bulk of available data is from the organised sector. Hence growth is misrepresented. The survey has nothing to say about this. It does not offer an explanation for the errors in GDP data nor does it clarify if these ‘reforms’ have led to good growth.
Despite the claimed reforms, the share of manufacturing in GDP has shrunk to around 12 per cent. The PLI scheme is way behind target with barely 10 per cent of allocated funds disbursed over four years.
Skilling schemes have........