Budget Shunned Populism, Bets On Capex To Power Jobs And Growth: PM Modi

New Delhi: Calling productive spending the hallmark of his government, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday said the newly announced Union Budget deliberately avoids short-term populism and instead pours record capital expenditure into infrastructure to spur employment and sustainable growth. In an exclusive interview with PTI, Modi said his government used its years in office to plug “structural gaps left behind by previous administrations”, pursuing bold reforms and laying the foundations for a developed India. He suggested that the last Budget marked the “next phase” of this journey.

Describing the budget for the fiscal year that will start on April 1 as a reflection of the governance approach, Modi said that the document “is a good reflection of our management style and priorities.”

“This Budget represents the next phase in this journey and adds momentum to our ‘Reform Express’. It is designed to accelerate the momentum and prepare our youth for the opportunities of a fast-changing world,” the Prime Minister told PTI. he said.

Referring to the pre-Budget Economic Survey, he said that capital accumulation, formalization of labor and digital public infrastructure have together increased India’s potential growth rate to 7 percent.

“Productive spending has been the hallmark of our government. High capital expenditure reflects our focus on infrastructure and capital investments, which are strong engines of long-term growth,” he told PTI in a written interview.

The FY27 Budget sharply increases capital expenditure to 12.2 lakh crore rupees (a 5-fold increase over 2013), while reinforcing the Modi government’s strategy of prioritizing infrastructure creation, logistics expansion and investment in sunrise sectors to spur long-term growth. It emphasizes spending on rail, roads, digital and energy infrastructure, as well as measures to ease compliance and improve credit flows, as central levers for job creation and economic momentum.

“This reflects a conscious strategic choice to invest in assets that create productivity, employment and future economic capacity rather than short-term populism. This shows that our focus is on improving people’s quality of life, creating employment for our youth and furthering the country’s progress towards Viksit Bharat,” Modi said. he said.

The Prime Minister said high-quality infrastructure has been neglected for long, posing a challenge to the public and Indian businesses.

“Poor and outdated infrastructure has no place in a country that aims to create a Viksit Bharat,” he said.

“Therefore, we have revolutionized the industry with our speed, scale and focus on building next-generation infrastructure while improving existing infrastructure. Over the last decade, India has witnessed perhaps the most comprehensive infrastructure building effort in our history, with an unprecedented emphasis on quality! The most important aspect of this has been the way we have built infrastructure with the future in mind.”

Underlining the scale of the expansion, he said the number of airports has doubled as orders for thousands of aircraft have been received, the number of cities served by metro has more than quadrupled, rural roads and internet connectivity are rapidly expanding, and investments are being made in the transformational expansion of freight corridors, ports and coastal connections.

In sectoral allocations, a capital expenditure of almost Rs 3 lakh crore has been made for Indian Railways, giving priority to high-speed connectivity, freight capacity and passenger safety, he said. Seven new high-speed rail corridors are proposed to be developed to connect major Indian cities, including the Southern High-Speed ​​Diamond corridor, which will significantly benefit Karnataka, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Puducherry.

At the same time, Dedicated Freight Corridors are being expanded to relieve congestion on passenger routes and reduce logistics costs for the industry.

Allocations for national highways have increased by almost 500 percent compared to a decade ago.

Highlighting investments in emerging sectors, Modi said investments are being made in sunrise sectors including biopharma, semiconductors, electronic component manufacturing, rare earth corridors and chemical parks. “These will give new impetus to employment and investment while strengthening India’s future.”

Emphasizing governance reforms, the prime minister said: “A key feature of this budget has been our continued emphasis on trust-based governance. Across sectors, ministries and processes, we are massively reducing paperwork, decriminalizing offenses and reducing compliance requirements. This is because we envision the state as an enabler and trust citizens. This will have a much deeper impact on people’s lives than the numbers in typical budgets.”

Modi said his government is building “an inclusive, technology-driven yet people-centered prosperity architecture that reaches the final stage and leaves no one behind”, with nation-building and economic empowerment as guiding principles.

Recalling the call he made from the Red Fort, ‘Yahi Samay Hai, Sahi Samay Hai’ (now is the time, the right time), Modi said that the sense of urgency has now become a “national belief”.

“The sense of purpose that you mentioned, ‘now is the time’, has always been present within us. But today, this sense of urgency has turned into a national belief, a determination that covers the whole society,” he said.

Explaining India’s position in the changing global order, Modi said, “We live in a post-pandemic world order that opens new doors for India; there are countries willing to partner with us in trade and innovation, we have a young and increasingly skilled population, and we are focused on strong growth accompanied by low inflation and macroeconomic stability.”

Framing the Budget in long-term terms, he said the document should not be seen just as Budget 2026. “This is the first budget in the second quarter of the 21st century. This budget consolidates the gains made since 2014 and builds upon them to impart momentum for the next quarter-century.”

“Just as the decisions and initiatives taken in the 1920s laid the foundation for independence in 1947, the decisions we are taking now lay the foundation for Viksit Bharat by 2047.” he added.