Union Budget 2026: From milk to sugar, small businesses seek GST relief

Small business owners and traders in Hyderabad have urged the Centre to provide some relief in GST and rising procurement costs in the upcoming Union Budget 2026-27, citing shrinking margins and slowing demand. Seasonal goods vendors and small retailers said indirect taxes on everyday products have made it increasingly difficult to sustain their businesses while keeping prices affordable for customers. Frequent price hikes in essential commodities, they said, have reduced their ability to stock goods and impacted daily sales, reported ANI. Call for GST reduction on essentialsTraders appealed to the government to consider reducing or waiving GST on basic food and dairy items such as milk, sugar and other daily-use products to ease pressure on both retailers and consumers.Earlier, Krishna Chaitanya, a Hyderabad-based retailer dealing in electronics and essential household items, flagged similar concerns over the existing GST structure. He said the tax burden on essential goods was affecting purchasing power and dampening market sentiment at the grassroots level.“High GST rates have reduced consumers' ability to spend, leading to a noticeable decline in demand. This fall in consumption has directly impacted retail businesses, particularly small traders who depend on steady daily sales,” Chaitanya said.While acknowledging the corrective measures introduced by the Centre on GST, he said conditions on the ground remained challenging for small retailers. He added that sluggish market activity was largely driven by high taxes on essential household and electronic goods, forcing customers to cut back on purchases.Chaitanya urged the government to reduce GST on essential household and electronic items to 12 per cent, stating that such a move could boost consumption, revive sales and provide relief to small traders and middle-class households.Budget session scheduleMeanwhile, Union parliamentary affairs minister Kiran Rijiju convened an all-party meeting of floor leaders of both houses of parliament on Tuesday ahead of the Budget session.The Budget session began on January 28 and will continue till April 2, with a break in between. The first phase will run from January 28 to February 13, followed by the second phase from March 9 to April 2, comprising a total of 30 sittings. The Union Budget 2026-27 will be presented on February 1.