Who’s Budget 2026’s Big Winner: Varanasi’s Faith Or Coimbatore’s Factories? All About Sitharaman’s Small-City Push

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman is presenting the Union Budget 2026–27 in parliament, which marks her ninth Budget speech so far. During her address, she spoke about how India’s growth is no longer limited to big metro cities alone. She said the government will continue to focus on building infrastructure in cities with a population of over five lakh. These cities mainly fall under Tier 2 and Tier 3 categories and are now expanding as key growth centres.

“We shall continue to focus on developing infrastructure in cities with over 5 lakh population, that is Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities, which have expanded to become growth centres,” Sitharaman said during her speech. She explained that better roads, housing, transport and services are needed as these cities grow faster. The Finance Minister also spoke about helping small businesses in these regions. She said professional institutions will be involved to support local enterprises.

To support this plan, the government will work with institutions like the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI), the Institute of Company Secretaries of India (ICSI) and the Institute of Cost Accountants of India (ICMAI). These bodies will design short-term and modular courses for young professionals. Sitharaman said this will help create a group of trained “corporate mitras” in smaller cities. “These accredited paraprofessionals will help MSMEs meet compliance requirements at affordable costs,” she added.