The Union Budget 2025-26, presented by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, highlights the government’s focus on youth empowerment, skill development, and digital learning. However, while these initiatives are welcome, the budget continues to fall short on critical investments in health, women’s empowerment, and India’s ageing population—key areas that are essential for long-term demographic and economic sustainability.
“While the Finance Minister talked about the three Ds—Democracy, Demand, and Demography—the budget does not sufficiently address fast-changing demographic trends that could have been prioritised for India’s goal of a Viksit Bharat,” said Poonam Muttreja, Executive Director, Population Foundation of India.
Welcoming the Focus on Youth and Skilling for India’s Demographic Dividend
We welcome the government’s increased investment in Atal Tinkering Labs, with 50,000 new labs planned over the next five years to promote scientific curiosity and innovation among students. Expanding broadband connectivity to all government secondary and primary schools is another critical step toward ensuring equitable access to digital learning resources.
The announcement of a ₹500 crore Centre of Excellence in AI for Education and 10,000 fellowships for tech research at IITs and IISc under the PM Research Fellowships scheme is a promising move to equip India’s youth with advanced skills to remain globally competitive.
Additionally, the budget for Saksham Anganwadi and POSHAN 2.0 (₹21,960 crore) has increased by 9% from last year’s ₹20,071 crore. This reflects the government’s growing recognition of the importance of early childhood nutrition and the first 1,000 days of a child’s development.
Women’s Empowerment: Gains in Allocations, But Shortfalls in Health Investments
The 117% increase in Mission Shakti’s allocation to ₹3,150 crore—which funds Beti Bachao Beti Padhao, One Stop Centres, and women’s safety initiatives—is commendable. However, while financial outlays for economic support have increased, critical health investments for women remain grossly inadequate. We must also ensure effective implementation and monitoring of these schemes, which remains a weakness.
The budget for family welfare schemes under central expenditure—which is crucial for contraceptive procurement and distribution—has increased by a negligible 0.2%, from ₹619 crore to ₹620 crore. This is deeply concerning, as the government recently introduced two new contraceptives (Injectable SC and Implants) in ten states, yet the meager allocation makes it almost impossible to expand these contraceptives nationwide.
Similarly, the budget for family welfare under the National Health Mission (NHM) has only increased by 7.7%, from ₹1,426 crore to ₹1,537 crore. Given India’s growing reproductive health needs and high unmet need for contraception, these allocations fail to reflect the urgency required to ensure accessible and affordable reproductive healthcare.
Neglect of the Health Sector and India’s Ageing Population
While the total health budget increased by 10.8% (₹95,957.87 crore), this remains insufficient to address India’s growing healthcare needs, particularly public health infrastructure, primary healthcare, and non-communicable diseases.
“We need transformative change, not incremental steps,” said Muttreja. “We must address the historical shortfalls in the health budgets over the years.”
Notably, the health sector was missing from the Finance Minister’s budget speech, raising concerns about the government’s long-term vision for India’s healthcare system.
Additionally, India is transitioning into an ageing society, yet this budget fails to introduce concrete measures to harness the ‘silver dividend’. With over 20% of India’s population expected to be aged 60 and above by 2050, investments in geriatric care, social security, and elderly-friendly infrastructure are critical for a sustainable future. The absence of substantial provisions for the elderly ignores this demographic reality and its socio-economic implications.
“The ministries of Women and Child Development, health and family welfare, and Education are likely to be disappointed with this budget,” said Poonam Muttreja. “The most urgent need is to improve livelihoods and ensure higher incomes, which can only happen by significantly stepping up investments in our people, and increasing budgetary allocations for health, nutrition, education and women’s empowerment.”
While there are incremental increases in social sector funding, the government must recognise that investing in health, education, and women’s empowerment is critical for long-term national development. We hope that public discourse around the budget will encourage policymakers to reconsider their priorities and take a more holistic approach towards India’s economic and social transformation.
