The Union Budget 2026, set to be presented by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on February 1, 2026, is generating significant anticipation across key sectors. Industry leaders are calling for reforms in ease of doing business, GST rationalisation, healthcare infrastructure, manufacturing incentives, logistics efficiency, and medical technology innovation to drive India’s growth toward a Viksit Bharat and position the country as a global hub.
These expectations align with priorities like boosting domestic manufacturing, enhancing affordability in healthcare, reducing compliance burdens for startups and MSMEs, and supporting sustainable infrastructure under initiatives such as PM Gati Shakti and PLI schemes.
Boosting Value-Added Manufacturing and Startups
Ankur Sachdeva, CEO & Co-Founder of Uppal Brewers and Distillers (UBD), emphasizes harnessing consumer trends for homegrown brands while streamlining regulations.
“India’s retail sector is poised towards a $1.9 trillion milestone by 2030, supported by Gen Z’s preference for authentic, homegrown manufacturing. For startups in the Value-Added Manufacturing space, such as ours, this sentiment can be harnessed more effectively by advancing the ‘Ease of Doing Business’ agenda. In particular, GST clarity and rationalisation, alongside a single-window system for digitised clearances, will be essential to accelerate innovation. Furthermore, establishing interstate regulatory consistency will reduce the compliance overheads that currently hinder startups from scaling responsibly across borders. By streamlining these multi-layered approvals and enhancing administrative efficiency, we can empower a new breed of Indian brands to lead the ‘Viksit Bharat’ narrative, placing India-origin products among the world’s most coveted premium experiences.”
Strengthening Healthcare Access and Workforce Safety
Healthcare leaders stress inclusive reforms, higher allocations, and professional involvement to bridge urban-rural gaps.
Reny Varghese, COO, Zynova Shalby Hospital, Mumbai, highlights the need for equitable access and protection for medical professionals.
“The budget should aim to strengthen India’s healthcare system in a more inclusive and secure manner. With rising healthcare demands across urban and rural India, it will be essential to take a decisive step by ensuring accessible healthcare for all. Higher budget allocation for rural health is important to bridge the gap in access, infrastructure, and trained manpower, ensuring quality care reaches the last mile. At the policy level, actively involving experienced professionals from the private healthcare sector can bring practical insights, innovation, and efficiency into decision-making. Other pivotal factors, like reserving dedicated funds to protect medical professionals from mob violence, ensuring their safety and dignity at the workplace, should also be highlighted in the budget. A secure and well-supported healthcare workforce is essential for delivering timely, consistent, patient-centric care and saving lives. The budget should be deeply committed to public health as well as medical professionals. We are eagerly looking forward to the budget, which will prioritize the nation’s health and shape the future of healthcare in India.”
Dr. G. Anil Krishna, Chairman & Managing Director, Medicover Hospitals (India), calls for prioritized funding in diagnostics, emergencies, and prevention.
“Healthcare must remain a top national priority in the upcoming Union Budget. Diseases such as heart attacks, strokes, cancer, diabetes, and kidney failure require timely diagnosis and prompt treatment to save lives and reduce long-term complications. Increased budgetary support for strengthening hospital infrastructure, emergency services, and advanced diagnostics will help ensure faster access to quality care for patients across regions. We also hope to see greater focus on preventive healthcare, early screening, and affordability of treatment. A healthcare-focused budget will empower hospitals to continue delivering comprehensive, patient-centric care and improve health outcomes for communities across the country.”
Dr. Pradeep Mahajan, Regenerative Medicine Researcher & Founder, advocates for substantial R&D boosts and infrastructure expansion.
“The upcoming budget should focus on healthcare and medical research. With a growing population and more people suffering from lifestyle-related diseases, the current health budget is not sufficient to meet future needs. Currently, new treatments such as stem cell therapy, biologics, and cell-based medicines are chosen by many people to tackle health problems. There should be measures taken to facilitate health research funding by at least 10–15% for supporting research and innovation. More money is needed when it comes to cancer treatment, mental health care, digital health services, and even affordable generic medicines. The goal should also be to improve hospitals and health facilities at the district and state levels. Likewise, expand medical colleges and increase undergraduate and postgraduate medical seats to meet the country’s growing healthcare demands. Higher investment in healthcare will help India to become a global medical hub and boost medical tourism. Supporting drug development, medical devices, and AI-based healthcare can make treatments more precise, safe, faster, effective, and less expensive. For strengthening the healthcare in India, the critical step will be to invest today in science, stem cells, and regenerative medicine.”
Advancing Logistics and Supply Chain Efficiency
Ajay Rao, Founder & CEO, Emiza, underscores continued infrastructure push and tech incentives.
“The upcoming Union Budget is an opportunity to accelerate India’s journey towards becoming a globally competitive logistics hub. Continued capex under PM Gati Shakti, across roads, rail, ports and integrated logistics parks, will be critical to reducing logistics costs and improving efficiency. For 3PL players, policy support for technology adoption such as automation, AI and digital supply chains, along with incentives for green warehousing, can significantly enhance productivity and sustainability. Clarity on GST, especially input tax credit on construction, will unlock faster development of Grade A warehouses. Easier access to long-term financing, focused support for MSMEs in Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities, and sustained investment in air cargo and cold-chain infrastructure will help build a resilient, future-ready logistics ecosystem aligned with the National Logistics Policy.”
Expectations from ZEISS India Leadership
Dhaval Radia, Chief Financial Officer, ZEISS India, seeks customs duty rationalisation and ease of doing business for high-tech sectors.
“As we look ahead to the upcoming Union Budget, there is strong expectation around further rationalisation of customs duties, particularly for the core growth sectors such as healthcare and high-end and precision manufacturing. Addressing inverted duty structures and ensuring a more predictable import framework and simplified governance framework will be critical for improving cost competitiveness and long-term investment planning and predictability. Equally important is continued progress on ease of doing business through fewer licenses, permits, and discretionary approvals for non-sensitive, technology-intensive imports. For advanced manufacturing, speed, certainty, and regulatory simplicity matter as much as incentives. A Budget that enables seamless access to global components, faster clearances, and stable policy signals will go a long way in strengthening India’s ambition to emerge as a global hub for high-value, technology-led manufacturing. Clear policy support for Global Capability Centres focused on high-value work such as Engineering, Digital Computing, Deep Tech, AI, Finance Transformation, and R&D – including rationalised transfer pricing rates and governance, simplified compliance, radically improving physical infrastructure specifically in GCC hotspots, and targeted incentives. Progress on the proposed India – EU free trade agreement, particularly with Germany, would be a strong enabler for technology-led manufacturing, smoother trade flows, and deeper industrial collaboration.”
Dipu Bose, Head, Medical Technology, ZEISS India & Neighboring Markets, pushes for PLI expansion and tax relief on devices.
“We are optimistic that the upcoming Union Budget will introduce transformative reforms to address critical gaps in India’s healthcare access and infrastructure. The focus should be on reducing tax burdens, expanding incentives for innovation, and significantly increasing public health spending to build a more inclusive and robust healthcare system that benefits every citizen, regardless of income or location. Expanding Production Linked Incentive (PLI 2.0) schemes for medical devices is vital to fostering innovation and reducing import reliance. Complementing this with phased manufacturing programs (PMP) and globally-aligned incentives for biosimilars, novel therapies, and research and development (R&D) will strengthen India’s healthcare ecosystem and bolster global competitiveness. Increasing public health spending to over 2.5% of GDP is essential to improving primary care and addressing decades of underinvestment in rural healthcare. Strategic investments in district hospitals, rural facilities, and telemedicine, particularly in Tier II/III cities, will bridge healthcare gaps, reduce financial strain on lower-income communities, and ensure equitable access for all. India faces pressing challenges in delivering affordable and accessible healthcare, especially in underserved regions. Aligning GST rates for essential medical devices to the 5% slab and reducing cumulative taxes such as Basic Customs Duty (BCD), GST, and Health Cess will make critical medical devices more affordable for consumers, particularly in areas with limited domestic manufacturing capacity. Simplifying import-export procedures by aligning with global best practices and reducing regulatory barriers can expedite device registration, classification, and clearances, enabling faster market entry for imported MedTech products. Implementing accelerated depreciation or tax incentives for hospitals, clinics, and diagnostic centers investing in ophthalmic equipment such as OCTs, surgical microscopes, fundus cameras, lasers, and perimeters can help offset the significant upfront costs associated with these critical investments.”
Amarjeet Singh Tak, Head of Research Microscopy Solutions, India and Neighboring Markets, ZEISS Group, calls for R&D and academia-industry ties.
“We look to the Union Budget to strengthen India’s research and innovation backbone through sustained investments in advanced scientific infrastructure with deeper academia–industry collaboration central to the vision of Viksit Bharat, where excellence, not just scale, defines progress. A strong thrust on “Make in India” and “Make with India”, combining global expertise with local capability, will accelerate precision-led innovation. Such measures are essential for India to emerge as a global leader in deep science, high-end manufacturing, and knowledge-driven growth.”
Aveen Padmaprabha, Business Head of Industrial Quality Solutions, ZEISS Group, India, focuses on automotive and EV components.
“The upcoming budget offers a critical opportunity to advance India’s automotive component manufacturing sector, aligning with the ‘Make in India’ vision and strengthening the country’s position in the global supply chain. Strategic reforms, such as rationalizing GST rates, introducing targeted incentives for EV component production, and expanding support under PLI schemes, can significantly enhance domestic manufacturing capabilities while reducing reliance on imports. Addressing challenges like high import duties and cess credits will be vital to improving cost competitiveness and fostering local sourcing. With the right policy framework, India has the potential to become a global hub for innovative, high-quality automotive components, driving sustainable economic growth and reinforcing its role in the international market.”
As the Union Budget 2026 nears, these insights from industry experts highlight a shared vision: targeted reforms in taxation, infrastructure, innovation funding, and regulatory simplification to fuel inclusive growth, domestic manufacturing, and global competitiveness in key sectors like manufacturing, healthcare, logistics, and medtech.
Last Updated on Friday, January 23, 2026 2:14 pm by Startup Chronicle Team
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