Presenting his 16th Budget, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah set a financial milestone for Karnataka, with the budget outlay exceeding ₹4 lakh crore for the first time. The revenue deficit has been reduced to ₹19,262 crore from ₹27,354 crore in 2024-25. The budget includes significant allocations for minorities and specific regional groups while prioritising women, children, and infrastructure development.
Siddaramaiah now holds the record for presenting the highest number of budgets, surpassing Thomas Isaac of Kerala, who presented 12. Delivering a nearly four-hour-long budget speech, the Chief Minister outlined his vision for the State’s fiscal policy.
Notably, Siddaramaiah has presented budgets under three other Chief Ministers. His first budget was under his former political mentor, now adversary—H.D. Deve Gowda, followed by budget presentations during the tenures of J.H. Patel and Dharam Singh.
He defended the five guarantee schemes—Gruha Lakshmi, Shakti, Gruha Jyothi, Anna Bhagya, and Yuva Nidhi—stating that they will continue. He clarified that these are not mere “freebies” but measures aimed at strengthening marginalised communities.
Economic growth, and investment target
Karnataka’s economy outpaced the national average, 7.4 per cent in 2024-25. The State aims to attract ₹1 lakh crore in investments and ranked third in foreign direct investment (FDI), securing $4.4 billion. Karnataka also led the country in overall exports, recording $88.8 billion, a growth of 11.17 per cent compared to the previous year.
To support growth beyond Bengaluru, the government will launch the Local Economy Accelerator Program (LEAP) in 2025, with an initial grant of ₹1,000 crore and an allocation of ₹200 crore for the current financial year. This initiative aims to create five lakh employment opportunities. Additionally, a start-up ecosystem will be developed in Mysuru, Mangaluru, Hubballi-Dharwad, and Kalaburagi. A Quantum Research Park (Phase 2) will be set up in collaboration with the Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bengaluru, with a ₹48 crore grant over three years.
Support for minority, and religious communities
The budget introduced targeted allocations for minority communities, which included ₹100 crore for the comprehensive development of Jain, Buddhist, and Sikh communities, ₹250 crore for the Christian community’s development, honorarium for Jain priests, Chief Grantis (Sikh religious leaders), and Pesh Imams of mosques has been increased to ₹6,000 per month.
In addition, the honorarium for Assistant Grantis and Muezzins has been raised to ₹5,000 per month, and ₹559 crore has been allocated to provide necessary infrastructure in Scheduled Caste (SC) colonies across the State.
Healthcare, and infrastructure investments
To enhance medical facilities, the healthcare budget has been increased from ₹12,000 crore last year to ₹14,500 crore. A total of ₹50,000 crore has been allocated for roads, urban transport, and rural connectivity projects. Of this, ₹8,916 crore is earmarked for Bengaluru’s development, and ₹40,000 crore is set aside for tunnel road projects. The Vijayapura Airport, built at ₹348 crore, will be operational by 2025-26. Updating the progress on the Karwar Naval Airport, the CM noted that the land acquisition is progressing, with necessary allocations planned for the current year.
Industrial, and Taxation policy
The industrial sector received a massive boost with ₹10,000 crore in investments. To improve the State revenue, Karnataka has projected a revenue collection target of ₹1,20,000 crore for 2025-26, up from ₹1,05,000 crore in 2024-25.
In a key taxation change, the government proposed an amendment to the Professional Tax Act, increasing the professional tax payable by salaried and wage earners from ₹200 to ₹300 for February, aligning it with the ₹2,500 annual cap.
While the congress hailed the budget as as a roadmap for Karnataka’s prosperity and self-reliance, the opposition was critical.
Leader of Opposition R Ashoka called it a “makeshift budget,” stating that the Congress government has trapped itself, unable to either sustain costly guarantee schemes or withdraw them.
BY Vijayendra, BJP MLA, termed it a “blueprint for appeasement.” He criticised the government for neglecting farmers, rural development, power, irrigation, SC/ST hostels, and youth employment, arguing that Congress prioritised vote-bank politics over real development.