Budget 2026: ₹12.2 Lakh Crore Capex, 20 Waterways, 7 High-Speed Rail Corridors

She stated that public capital expenditure had grown "manifold" from ₹2 lakh crore in FY2014-15 to ₹11.2 lakh crore in 2025-26. The Union Finance Minister proposed increasing this allocation, earmarking ₹12.2 lakh crore for public capex in FY2026-27 to "continue the momentum."

To strengthen the confidence of private developers as part of the infrastructure push, Sitharaman proposed setting up an Infrastructure Risk Guarantee Fund to provide prudentially calibrated partial credit guarantee to lenders.

Sitharaman further detailed plans to unlock the economic potential of urban regions by mapping city economic regions (CERs) tailored to their unique growth drivers. “An allocation of Rs 5,000 crore per CER over five years is proposed for implementing their plans through a challenge mode with a reform-cum-results based financing mechanism,” she said.

Union Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari said the Union Budget 2026 places infrastructure at the centre of India’s journey towards Viksit Bharat 2047. “With a clear focus on connectivity, manufacturing depth and regional balance, the Budget outlines a decisive push to build world-class, future-ready infrastructure,” Gadkari said in a post on X.

The infra push is also being seen as an attempt by the Central government to improve the business environment in the country. It must be noted that over the past few years, India has significantly improved its Ease of Doing Business (EoDB) ranking, jumping from 142nd (2014) to 63rd (2020) in the World Bank report by implementing major reforms like GST, IBC, streamlining permits, and simplifying business registration, making it more attractive for investment, though challenges remained in areas like property registration and contract enforcement.

Dedicated Freight Corridors, Waterways  

A major thrust of the budget is on logistics and transport connectivity. As part of the infra push, Sitharaman announced plans the setting up of dedicated freight corridors connecting Dankuni in the east to Surat in the West, the operationalisation of 20 new waterways over the next 5 years.

She also said that training institutes would be set up as regional centres of excellence for the "development of required manpower" for the proposed 20 new waterways.

"This will benefit youth in the entire stretch of the waterways to train and acquire skills," Sitharaman said.

The setting up of a ship repair ecosystem in Varanasi and Patna to cater to the inland waterways, new and old, was also announced today.

The FM also proposed the launch of a coastal cargo promotion scheme to incentivise a modal shift, increasing the share of inland waterways and coastal shipping from 6% to 12% by 2047.

Meanwhile, the industry has called for preventive maintenance, rapid incident response, and climate-resilient asset upkeep so that increased mobility translates into safer journeys, lower disruption, and more dependable logistics for communities and businesses. 

“Budget 2026 reinforces the country’s long-term commitment to infrastructure-led growth. For road owners and operators, the next phase is about performance on the ground. Higher capex and risk-support mechanisms will expand connectivity, but outcomes will depend on how safely and reliably corridors run every day," Rajesh Chabrra, CTSO, NXT Infra said.

High-Speed Rail Corridors

The Minister announced the development of seven new high-speed rail corridors, giving a fresh push to India’s rail infrastructure and long-term connectivity goals in the Union Budget 2026. The initiative aims to link major metropolitan cities and key economic centres through a faster, safer and more modern rail network, cutting travel time and supporting balanced regional development.

As part of the announcement, a high-speed rail corridor between Mumbai and Pune has been proposed, a move expected to bring significant relief to thousands of daily commuters between the two cities. In North India, the proposed Delhi–Varanasi high-speed rail corridor is set to strengthen connectivity between the national capital and eastern Uttar Pradesh, while also improving access to important cultural and economic hubs.

Together, these projects are expected to accelerate economic activity, create jobs, improve mobility for millions, and further position railways as a central pillar of India’s future transport infrastructure.

To modernise rail transport, improve inter-city mobility and deepen economic integration across regions, the following high-speed rail corridors will be developed.

• Mumbai–Pune
• Pune–Hyderabad
• Hyderabad–Bengaluru
• Hyderabad–Chennai
• Chennai–Bengaluru
• Delhi–Varanasi
• Varanasi–Siliguri