Following the tabling of the Union Budget 2026-27 by
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, CA Abhay Bhutada, Entrepreneur,
Philanthropist, & Chairman of the Abhay Bhutada Foundation and
TAB Global Ventures, shared his views on the budget’s priorities.
Prepared in Kartavya Bhawan, the budget is anchored
around three core Kartavyas: accelerating and sustaining economic growth,
building the capacity and aspirations of people, and ensuring inclusive access
to opportunities in line with the vision of Sabka Sath, Sabka Vikas.
Banking, NBFC Reforms and Tax Simplification
Bhutada highlighted the proposal to set up a
High-Level Committee on Banking for Viksit Bharat as a timely reform to review
the sector’s readiness for the next phase of growth. He also pointed to the
restructuring of Power Finance Corporation and Rural Electrification
Corporation as a move to improve scale, efficiency and long-term infrastructure
financing in public sector NBFCs.
“As credit demand expands, aligning stability,
inclusion and consumer protection will be critical for sustaining confidence in
the financial system,” CA Abhay
Bhutada said.
On taxation, Bhutada said the new Income Tax Act,
effective April 2026, along with simplified TDS and TCS provisions and extended
timelines for return revisions, could materially reduce compliance friction and
litigation, improving ease of doing business.
Support for MSMEs and Capital Access
Bhutada, a Chartered Accountant, said the creation of
a ₹10,000 crore SME Growth Fund is a targeted step towards building “Champion
SMEs” by providing growth-stage risk capital linked to defined performance
criteria. He also highlighted the additional ₹2,000 crore allocation to the
Self-Reliant India Fund, which reinforces continued access to risk capital for
micro enterprises.
He noted that the involvement of professional bodies
such as ICAI, ICSI and ICMAI in developing short-term, practical programmes for
“Corporate Mitras”, particularly in Tier II and Tier III towns, could
strengthen financial discipline, compliance readiness and governance among
small businesses.
Technology, Data Centres, and Global Investment
On the technology front, Abhay Bhutada said the budget
sends a clear signal to position India as a global data and digital services
hub. Tax holidays for foreign cloud service providers using Indian data centres,
along with rationalised safe harbour norms and automated approvals for IT
services, provide greater certainty for long-term investment and exports.
He concluded that Budget 2026-27 offers a coherent
financial and technology framework, and that disciplined execution of
regulatory and capital allocation reforms will be critical to achieving
sustainable growth under the Viksit Bharat vision.
