The BJP and the CPM said the last full budget presented by the Mamata Banerjee government before the 2026 Assembly polls lacked provisions for employment, making it directionless and disheartening for Bengal's 2.15 crore youth.

“Mamata Banerjee came to power promising jobs for the youths and in her 15th budget, which is the last before the elections, she betrayed the youth. This budget is completely anti-employment as there are no provisions for any kind of job creation. She has betrayed 2.15 core unemployed youth of the state,” the leader of the Opposition, Suvendu Adhikari, said.

After the budget was presented in the House, BJP MLAs held a rally on the Assembly premises demanding jobs for the youth. Adhikari promised to give jobs to one youth per household if the BJP came to power in 2026.

“The BJP will prepare a full-fledged budget after it comes to power in 2026. Our MLAs will reach households and promise jobs for one youth per house. We are not giving false promises. We will keep our commitment,” he said.

The CPM and the Congress also criticised the government for failing to create employment opportunities for the youth, forcing them to leave the state.

“There is neither any planning, intention nor attention for the youth. In this budget, there is no provision for any employment opportunity. It is a jugglery of numbers. The government has no intention to do anything for the young people of the state. They want the people to live on doles and that will serve their purpose,” CPM state secretary Md Salim said.

He expressed concern about the debt burden of the government.

Although Mamata blamed the Left Front for accumulating huge debts when it lost power in 2011, Salim said at the end of the current fiscal, the government's debt burden would be four times what it was when Mamata took over.

The CPM leader also described the allocation of funds in the name of the "Nadi Bandhan" project as mere eyewash. "Has the government prepared a detailed project report before making the announcement?" asked Salim.

Mamata denied the Opposition charge and the main focus of the budget was employment creation and the government was working in a positive direction towards that.

“This state budget has a vision. It will create employment opportunities. It has been designed so that people do not have to seek financial assistance.... Our vision is clear — our mission is to create more employment. In this Bengal Global Business Summit 2025, we received investment proposals worth ₹4,40,595 crore, of which ₹16,000 crore has already been cleared...,” the chief minister said at a press conference after the budget.

“We are developing six economic corridors which will connect the entire state. This will attract investments and generate employment,” she added.

Congress spokesperson Soumya Aich Roy said: “She (Mamata) is not telling the truth. If there is so much investment, then why are the youth leaving the state? This is a directionless budget. There is no scope for employment. There is no mention of any project in the health and education sectors. The budget doesn't have provisions to reduce the debt burden.”