Happy with focus on health

Barnali (60) and Dr Anjon Debnath (68) are residents of Siliguri. Anjon heads the pathology department at a leading multispeciality hospital, while Barnali manages the family laboratory. Their primary ask from the budget is tax reliefs for the elderly that preserve disposable income, alongside measures that maintain a low-inflation environment to protect purchasing power. They urge the government to build on significant reliefs in the new tax regime and expand exemptions on interest income under the old regime.

Reducing compliance burdens would greatly benefit seniors handling their own finances, says Anjon. Barnali hopes for healthcare and insurance reforms, building on GST exemptions for individual health and life insurance. More measures to make health insurance affordable are welcome. Anjon emphasises on continued public investment in healthcare to benefit patients and professionals alike.

Budget reaction

The Budget largely lives up to our expectations by significantly lowering the cost of critical medicines (cancer/rare diseases), simplifying the tax code, and reducing TCS on medical remittances. The robust focus on a geriatric care ecosystem and assistive technology directly addresses the lifestyle needs of an aging demographic. However, the removal of certain deductions against dividend income and stricter norms for sovereign gold bonds will require a slight readjustment in investment strategy to maintain tax efficiency.

Nothing in it for us

Sangita (42) and Kallol (42) Debnath live in New Delhi with their three-year-old son Kiyan. Kallol works as a management consultant, while Sangita teaches commerce at a leading convent school. As a teacher, Sangita’s primary expectation from the budget is financial relief for salaried individuals. She hopes for an increase in the standard deduction or small tax benefits, which would boost her take-home salary.

This extra money would ease managing daily expenses, children’s needs and rising costs. Better tax benefits on savings and retirement plans would also help her save more for the future with less stress. Kallol’s wish list includes clean energy incentives with enhanced PLI outlays, customs duty exemptions on imported components and increased viability gap funding.

Budget reaction

From a professional lens, the budget is growth-oriented — strong on infrastructure and long-term investment, says Sangita. But personally, there’s little clarity or relief on taxes, so financially it doesn’t change much for our household. We see ambition in the economy, but as a middle-class family, we were hoping for more direct relief.

For Kallol, the budget is deeply disappointing. He feels it favours states governed by the ruling party or those facing elections in 2026.

MSME fund a much-needed step

Sunabha Das (29) is an MSME entrepreneur whose firm manufactures industrial glue for the B2B segment. His primary expectation from the Budget is a streamlined regulatory framework to facilitate cross-border trade and addressal of the inverted GST duty structure. As he scales toward letters of credit (LC) based trade to facilitate cross-border expansion, he looks for a more seamless regulatory framework to support international growth.

While there is a passing need to simplify the paperwork associated with SAFTA (South Asian Free Trade Area) documentation and export clearances, his focus remains on securing better access to bank-to-bank financing. On the domestic front, his primary concern is the inverted duty structure, where raw materials attract 18 per cent GST while finished solutions are taxed at only 5 per cent. This discrepancy leads to the constant accumulation of input tax credits, which strains the working capital essential for day-to-day manufacturing operations.

To optimise his tax liability, he relies on capital expenditure incentives, specifically utilising additional depreciation on new machinery purchases to lower taxable income. Furthermore, as he explores digital portals to increase visibility, he expects the upcoming budget to offer robust government schemes supporting digital adoption and a simplified compliance roadmap for MSMEs looking to scale operations domestically and globally.

Budget reaction

The ₹10,000-crore MSME Growth Fund is a significant and much-needed step. While the new Surat-Dankuni freight corridor will greatly ease supply chain and logistics, the lack of a direct fix for the inverted duty structure remains a concern. I look forward to the timely completion of the schemes and projects and hope the Centre ensures these reach everyone in an equitable manner and improve the ease-of-doing business, especially in Bengal.

Eye on the long term

Soumi Dutta (28), an HR professional in Calcutta, ties the Union Budget to one core aspiration for young professionals like her: owning a home. In today’s economy, where salaries rise steadily but property prices soar, affordable housing isn’t a luxury—it’s essential for financial stability and long-term planning. Therefore a budget that emphasises the creation of more affordable housing will be crucial to tackle a challenge early-career earners face.

Skyrocketing urban rents devour monthly incomes, curbing savings and investments. Incentives for first-time buyers, reduced interest burdens, and sustained affordable housing projects directly alleviate this strain—the government may consider these under the new tax regime. The budget can also prioritise measures to upgrade urban infrastructure and expand public transport, enabling living near workplaces without crippling costs.

This boosts productivity, cuts commute exhaustion, and elevates quality of life. Housing stability ripples through the economy too. When young earners confidently buy homes, it fosters disciplined finances, stimulates allied sectors, and bolsters consumer sentiment. For many, it’s the gateway to building lasting wealth. Moreover, measures aimed at job creation—especially in the organised sector—and skill upgradation would be welcome. Implementing these changes would bridge the gap between rising aspirations and reality, allowing young talent to flourish without financial instability.

Budget reaction

Overall, the budget seems responsible and future-focused, but from a young professional’s point of view, it prioritises macro growth over immediate personal financial comfort. It builds the road for tomorrow — but doesn’t make today much easier. It delivers on infrastructure upgrades, which supports my quality of life and career stability as an HR professional. However, it falls short of my specific desire to make buying a home affordable in the immediate future. The focus remains on supply-side infrastructure rather than demand-side subsidies for the urban middle class.