With Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman set to present the Union Budget 2026-27 on February 1, 2026, at 11 AM, industry leaders from enterprise AI, health longevity, logistics, supply chain, and skilling are urging targeted fiscal and policy support to shift from announcements to on-ground execution, data modernization, infrastructure reliability, and outcome-linked investments.
Kaushik Mitra, Vice President and Head of India Go-to-Market, Celonis India:
“The Budget could bring in an opportunity to directly enable Enterprise AI adoption by addressing execution readiness. The future of the enterprise is AI-driven and composable, but it all starts with making processes work. Clear support for enterprise data modernization and an open, system-agnostic ecosystem would allow companies to free the process from system silos and embrace Process Intelligence. This is essential to deploy AI reliably in supply chains, finance, and manufacturing, where fragmented processes and a great disconnect between departments still limit impact. Stable and predictable tax and compliance frameworks will further enable long-term investment in technology and talent. A budgetary focus on these areas will help Indian enterprises ground AI in a transparent, real-time understanding of how the business actually runs, converting AI spend into true Enterprise AI and sustained operational performance.”
Sumed Marwaha, Managing Director, AHEAD India:
“As India looks ahead to the Union Budget 2026, the enterprise technology ecosystem is entering a phase where execution capability will matter as much as innovation. The next wave of growth will be shaped by how effectively infrastructure investment, regulatory clarity and talent development come together to support always-on, large-scale digital operations. Continued focus on digital infrastructure, cloud ecosystems and modern data platforms will help organisations run resilient hybrid environments that span on-prem and multi-cloud architectures. As DPDP Act provisions move into execution, practical operational guidance and ecosystem maturity around data governance will be critical in helping organisations move from policy compliance to embedded practice. A key emerging priority is also the build-out of physical AI infrastructure and data centres across India. Supporting this growth will require strong government focus on power availability, connectivity, land readiness and regional infrastructure, so India can sustain the scale of compute needed for next-generation AI workloads. Cybersecurity remains central to this conversation. Beyond tools, enterprises need stronger security engineering, operational resilience and skilled teams to manage growing threat complexity. Equally important is sustained investment in industry-aligned skilling, so talent can keep pace with evolving delivery models. These ecosystem enablers will be critical to reinforcing India’s position as a strategic engine for how global enterprises build, run and scale technology.”
Parth Amin, CEO & Co-Founder, Decode Age:
“As India prepares for a demographic shift marked by longer lifespans and a rising burden of chronic disease, the Union Budget has an opportunity to strengthen preventive healthcare and longevity at scale. Policy focus on sustained R&D incentives, regulatory clarity for science-led health innovation, and shared access to advanced research infrastructure across genomics, microbiome science, diagnostics and health data can accelerate meaningful innovation. Enabling long term growth capital and deeper collaboration between startups, academia, clinicians and industry will further support this shift. Together, these measures can move healthcare from late-stage treatment to early intervention and healthspan-focused outcomes, while building a globally competitive health innovation economy.”
Dr Ashvini Jakhar, Founder and CEO, Prozo:
“India’s supply chains are operating under sustained pressure from faster delivery expectations, wider distribution footprints, and structurally higher service intensity across categories. In this environment, the biggest policy lever remains execution-led infrastructure that improves predictability, not fragmented capacity creation. Logistics costs fall when freight movement becomes reliable, through lower transit variability, faster turnaround times, and better asset utilisation. We are already moving in the right direction through the National Logistics Policy and PM Gati Shakti, and the outcomes are beginning to show. DPIIT–NCAER now estimates logistics costs at under 10% of GDP. To compound these gains, continuity in capital expenditure is critical. The government’s allocation of ₹11.11 lakh crore in FY25 (3.4% of GDP), followed by an estimated ₹11.21 lakh crore next year, reflects the kind of sustained execution required to improve corridor reliability. The next phase must focus on multimodal speed, including rail-led freight movement. Dedicated Freight Corridors are a strong example of infrastructure that reduces dwell time and improves predictability across key routes. This national infrastructure push must also be paired with decentralised warehousing closer to demand, as e-commerce and hyperlocal delivery are structurally reshaping fulfilment patterns. On-ground efficiency will depend on resolving three persistent bottlenecks: urban logistics friction, compliance complexity, and consistent implementation of new labour policies. With quick commerce scaling, logistics can no longer be treated as a peripheral activity in cities. Designated logistics zones, predictable delivery access norms, and aligned municipal regulation are essential to reduce daily friction and cost. Equally important is regulatory consistency across municipal, state, and regional levels. Supply chain operators run integrated networks that span cities and states, and uneven interpretation or enforcement of rules directly increases cost, delays expansion, and weakens service reliability. Warehousing, as a non-manufacturing activity, needs simpler and fully digitised approvals that are applied consistently across jurisdictions, especially as capacity expands into Tier 2 and Tier 3 markets. Finally, clarity around working hours, overtime norms, and gig workforce implementation under the new labour codes is critical for warehousing and last-mile operations, which are inherently shift-led. While these reforms require adaptation and add near-term cost, they also reflect the evolving realities of modern logistics and help stabilise workforce availability over time. Beyond individual announcements, the strongest signal the Budget can send is continuity and coordinated execution, supported by aligned regulation, scale enablers such as Multi-Modal Logistics Parks and faster approvals, so supply chains can expand with speed, predictability, and sustainable economics.”
Rajiv Jayaraman, Founder-CEO, KNOLSKAPE:
“India is at an inflection point, with AI and associated skilling needs moving from experimentation to scale even as a talent-productivity gap persists. While programs like Skill India and PMKVY have laid a strong foundation for workforce upskilling, real-world deployment reveals the need for more agile, industry-aligned frameworks that prioritize outcomes over rote training. As the ecosystem evolves rapidly, the sector requires consistent policy support and streamlined execution. In the upcoming Union Budget 2026, incentives tied to measurable employability outcomes such as job creation around AI, DeepTech and innovation pilots would drive greater transformation than generic allocations. Simplified reimbursement norms for apprenticeships, tax streamlining for AI R&D in skilling tech, and sustained funding for public-private partnerships will empower providers to scale responsibly and prepare India’s youth for an AI-first economy.”
These expert insights highlight a common priority for the Union Budget 2026: deliver execution-ready support for Enterprise AI adoption, data modernization, preventive healthcare and longevity innovation, supply-chain predictability and logistics infrastructure, and outcome-oriented skilling collectively strengthening India’s digital transformation, operational resilience, health equity, and talent competitiveness.
Last Updated on: Tuesday, January 27, 2026 11:04 am by News Pixel Team | Published by: News Pixel Team on Tuesday, January 27, 2026 11:03 am | News Categories: News
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