Ahead of the Union Budget 2026-27, Prime Minister Narendra Modi is set to meet top economists and experts on Tuesday to seek their views.
The meeting is being held as part of the government’s ongoing consultations ahead of key economic decisions in the next Union Budget. Besides economists and sectoral experts, Niti Aayog Vice Chairman Suman Bery, NITI Aayog CEO BVR Subrahmanyam and other members were also likely to attend the meeting, according to officials.
The meeting with PM Modi is set to serve as a platform for economists and experts to share their views and assessments on the country’s current economic situation.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman is likely to present the Budget on February 1, amid geopolitical uncertainties and US tariffs.
She has held several consultations with economists, representatives of trade unions and labour organisations as part of the groundwork in the run-up to the Union Budget 2026-27.
The meetings were part of the ministry’s annual stakeholder engagement process. Similar pre-budget discussions have been held with representatives of other sectors as well in recent days, such as banking, hospitality, IT and startups. Intensive discussions have also been held on pushing growth and creating more jobs and incomes in the agriculture, MSME and manufacturing sectors.
Meanwhile, apex business chamber CII has proposed a four-pronged fiscal strategy ahead of the Union Budget 2026-27 that includes debt stability, fiscal transparency, revenue mobilisation and expenditure efficiency.
According to a CII statement, at the core of the roadmap is adherence to the government’s debt glide path targeting 50 per cent (plus or minus 1 per cent) of GDP by FY31.
Maintaining Central debt at roughly 54.5 per cent of GDP and the fiscal deficit at 4.2 per cent of GDP in FY27 will preserve macro credibility while supporting growth.
