11 am, 1st Feb 2026, when every economist and so-called economist were glued to their tv screens waiting for the finance minister to deliver the Union Budget that would shake the stock market. But to everyone’s surprise, we received not groundbreaking norms but a simple guide that would set the benchmarks for future operations. 3 Kartavyas inspired the budget, each focusing on different elements of the economy. Today, we will talk about the first kartavya.
Objective
The first Kartavya was to accelerate and sustain economic growth and focused on six key areas:
Scaling up manufacturing in 7 strategic and frontier sectors.
Rejuvenating legacy industrial sectors.
Creating “Champion MSMEs”.
Delivering a powerful push to infrastructure.
Ensuring long-term energy security and stability.
Developing City Economic Regions (CERs).
Analysis
- Biopharma Sector
“*To develop India as a global Biopharma manufacturing hub, the Biopharma SHAKTI with an outlay of ₹ 10,000 crores to build the ecosystem for domestic production of biologics and biosimilars will be set up over the next 5 years. The Strategy will include a Biopharma-focused network with 3 new National Institutes of Pharmaceutical Education and Research (NIPER) **institutes **and **the *upgrading of 7 existing ones. It will also create a network of over 1000 accredited Indian Clinical Trials sites. The Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation will be strengthened to meet global standards and approval timeframes through a dedicated scientific review cadre and specialists”
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Biosimilars differ from traditional medicines because they are living medicines. They are produced using living cells (bacteria and yeast) and are difficult to manufacture. These are used to treat serious diseases such as cancer and diabetes.
The government is allocating 10,000 crores to build factories and labs to produce such medicines, reducing dependence on imports. Additionally, they are building 3 new NIPERs to ensure a workforce is ready to work in these labs. 1000 test sites are being built to evaluate these medicines.
Making biosimilars can reduce treatment costs by 30-50%. This will create more jobs for researchers, lab technicians and doctors. Historically, India’s regulator (CDSCO) was slow and lacked specialisation. Biopharma SHAKTI is the final piece of the puzzle to ensure India makes the most advanced and cheapest medicines.
- Textile Sector
“For the labour-intensive Textile Sector, an Integrated Programme with 5 sub-parts was proposed: The National Fibre Scheme for self-reliance in natural fibres such as silk, wool and jute, man-made fibres, and new-age fibres; Textile Expansion and Employment Scheme to modernise traditional clusters with capital support for machinery, technology upgradation and common testing and certification centres; A National Handloom and Handicraft programme to integrate and strengthen existing schemes and ensure targeted support for weavers and artisans; Tex-Eco Initiative to promote globally competitive and sustainable textiles and apparels; Samarth 2.0 to modernize and upgrade the textile skilling ecosystem through collaboration with industry and academic institutions”
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Currently, India imports a lot of high-quality silk and synthetic fibres. The primary goal of this policy is to reduce dependence on imports and protect our farmers.
This enables small family businesses to compete with global factories. It creates millions of jobs and increases yield through advanced technology. Artisans in small villages will have the opportunity to sell in the cities.
Many countries, like Europe, refuse to buy clothes that aren’t in line with ESG compliance. The Tex-Eco initiative helps India get the “Green Stamp” and sell easily across various countries. This helps increase global competitiveness and make India safer and cleaner.
- Revitalising MSMEs:
“Recognising MSMEs as a vital engine of growth, a dedicated ₹10,000 crore SME Growth Fund was proposed to create future Champions, incentivising enterprises based on select criteria”
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Since the COVID-19 pandemic, the government has tried to protect small shops by reserving items that only they can make. It keeps them safe from competition for a long time and focuses their essential attention on survival. But the shift in dominance has occurred, and the government is investing as a partner.
When an MSME needs capital, it approaches a bank for a loan and must pay fixed monthly interest, which can strain the company's cash flow. The SME fund provides equity and makes the government a partner in the business, thereby reducing debt liability.
But only businesses with a track record of increasing sales, export readiness, and the potential to grow 10x are eligible for this fund.
- Capex Growth
“The Finance Minister said, public capex has increased manifold from ₹2 lakh crore in FY2014-15 to an allocation of ₹11.2 lakh crore in BE 2025-26. In FY2026-27, she proposed to increase it to ₹12.2 lakh crore to continue the momentum”
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The increase in Public Capex reflects the government's investment priorities and budget allocation.dd The budget has increased from 2 lakh crore to 12.2 lakh crore over the past decade.
Increasing government spending can lead to job creation, thus reducing unemployment. This increases productivity across the economy, thereby setting benchmarks for future growth.
- Freight Corridors
“To promote environmentally sustainable movement of cargo, the Finance* **Minister proposed new Dedicated Freight Corridors connecting Dankuni in the East, to Surat in the West; b) operationalise 20 new National Waterways (NW) over next 5 years, starting with NW-5 in Odisha to connect mineral rich areas of Talcher and Angul and industrial centres like Kalinga Nagar to the Ports of Paradeep and Dhamra. Training Institutes will be set up as Regional Centres of Excellence for **the *development of the required workforce”
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This sector focuses on cost-effective logistics to move goods efficiently between locations without causing environmental damage.
This links the “Coal and Steel” heartland, like Talcher, Angul, and Kalinga Nagar, directly to the two major sea ports, like Paradeep and Dhamra. It is much cheaper and cleaner to move 500 tonnes of coal onto a single boat than to haul it in 50 trucks.
Since this job requires significant skill and efficiency, the government is establishing “Specialised Schools” to train people for these roles.
- City Economic Regions
“The Budget aims to amplify the potential of cities* further** to deliver the economic power of agglomerations by mapping city economic regions (CER), based on their specific growth drivers. An allocation of ₹ 5000 crore per CER over 5 years is proposed for implementing their plans through a challenge mode with a reform-cum-results based financing mechanism.*
To promote environmentally sustainable passenger systems, seven High-Speed Rail corridors between cities will be developed as ‘growth connectors’, namely i) Mumbai-Pune, ii) Pune-Hyderabad, iii) Hyderabad-Bengaluru, iv) Hyderabad-Chennai, v) Chennai-Bengaluru, vi) Delhi-Varanasi, vii) Varanasi-Siliguri”
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CERs are specific cities that receive funding to accelerate their projects and have significant growth potential. Each CER receives funding based on what it’s already good at. The city doesn’t receive the funds in full; it receives the remainder upon demonstrating progress.
The government is also building seven new bullet-train-style routes, called the “Growth Connectors,” that will change how people work.
Mumbai-Pune: Will take just 48 minutes (down from 3+ hours).
Pune-Hyderabad: Down to under 2 hours.
Hyderabad-Bengaluru: Will take about 2 hours.
Hyderabad-Chennai: Down to about 3 hours.
Chennai-Bengaluru: Just 73 minutes (it’s currently 5-6 hours).
Delhi-Varanasi: Less than 4 hours.
Varanasi-Siliguri: Around 3 hours (connecting the North to the East).
Conclusion
The first kartavya signals that India does not want to be a low-cost service provider. With initiatives such as Biopharma, high-speed rail expansion, and a 10,000-crore SME fund, the country is focused on delivering high-quality services and products at lower costs and greater efficiency.