Union Budget: Gains and gaps for Bihar

Patna: The Union Budget has left Bihar’s industrial sector disappointed due to the absence of state-specific measures, though industry representatives acknowledge that it is broadly positive for both the country and Bihar.

Bihar required a booster dose in the Union Budget to accelerate development, given the lack of industries and employment opportunities in the state. “But no specific efforts have been made for Bihar. It is, however, overall good for the country,” Bihar Industries Association president Ram Lall Khetan told this newspaper.




Bihar was in focus last year due to the elections when Union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman, dressed in a Madhubani sari, announced a series of schemes for the state. These included the Makhana Board, a greenfield airport, funds for the Western Kosi Canal Project following the 2024-25 provisions for the Kosi-Mechi rivers linking project, the Vishnupad and Mahabodhi Temple corridors, the IIT Patna expansion plan and a National Institute of Food Technology, Entrepreneurship, and Management in Bihar.

This time, Bihar did not find a direct mention in the Union Budget, except for Patna, where a ship repair centre has been proposed along with Varanasi. Despite this, Bihar is expected to gain from several broader proposals, including the Varanasi-Siliguri high-speed rail corridor, growth plans for Tier-2 and Tier-3 cities, girls’ hostels in every district, SHE-Mart for women entrepreneurs, and schemes aimed at self-reliance in natural fibres such as silk, wool and jute. The textile expansion and employment scheme to modernise traditional clusters with capital support for machinery, along with Samarth 2.0 to modernise and upgrade the textile skilling ecosystem in places like Bhagalpur and Gaya, are also seen as beneficial.

The Union Budget proposals are likely to benefit cities such as Patna, Muzaffarpur, Bhagalpur, Darbhanga, Begusarai, Nalanda, Purnia and Gaya, as urban centres with a population of over five lakh are set to receive additional development funds.

“Women’s hostels across all 38 districts, alongside Self-Help Entrepreneur-Marts for rural women-led enterprises, provide a dual-purpose framework for enhancing both safety and income generation. The Mahatma Gandhi Gram Swaraj initiative focuses on revitalising khadi, handloom and handicrafts, thereby reinforcing Bihar’s rural economy through localised value addition. The strategic focus on Purvodaya states ensures that Bihar is a primary beneficiary of targeted tourism development, leveraging its cultural heritage for regional economic revitalisation,” said Bakshi Amit Kumar Sinha, faculty member at Bihar Institute of Public Finance and Policy (BIPFP).

Sinha said key initiatives such as Biopharma SHAKTI (Strategy for Healthcare Advancement through Knowledge, Technology and Innovation), India Semiconductor Mission 2.0 and the Electronics Components Manufacturing Scheme would unlock advanced investment opportunities in the state. “The Budget introduces transformative logistical and social interventions specifically tailored to Bihar,” he said.