A forgettable budget prepared by a finance minister, who forgot promises made last year: Chidambaram
New Delhi (PTI): Senior Congress leader P Chidambaram on Monday attacked the government for cutting capital expenditure in 2025-26 at a time 'when neither the public sector, private sector nor foreign investors are investing in India', while terming Union Budget 2026-27 a "forgettable budget".
Initiating a general discussion on Union Budget 2026-27 in the Rajya Sabha, the former finance minister also said the government's much vaunted 'Reform Express' is stuck, if not derailed and while the unemployment among youth continues to pose serious challenge, the government's "internship scheme" has failed.
Chidambaram also hit out at the government for cutting allocations for agriculture and rural development accusing it of depriving roads and housing to villages.
"This is a forgettable budget, a forgettable budget which has been prepared by a finance minister, who forgot her promises made in this House last year," he asserted.
Attacking the government, he said,"For almost 12 years, capital investment, gross fixed capital formation, is stuck at 30 per cent of GDP. Net FDI in 2024-25 collapsed to less than 0.09 per cent. FPIs, foreign portfolio investors are pulling out. Private investment, although companies are cash rich, is stuck at 22 per cent of GDP."
He further said,"In this situation where neither the public sector nor the private sector nor the foreign investor is investing in India, this government has cut capital expenditure. In the year 2025-26 they have cut capital expenditure by a whopping Rs 1,44,376 crore."
The Centre has cut its capital expenditure by Rs 25,335 crore, he said, adding,"and what is worse the state's capital expenditure for which the Centre gives advances is cut by Rs 1,19,041 crore."
Stressing on the challenge of unemployment, the senior Congress leader said,"Youth unemployment is 15 per cent. Less than 25 per cent of the workforce is in regular employment. There is a shift to self employment, and more workers are in the agriculture sector than they were four or five years ago."
He further said,"In a country with 144 crore people, only 195 lakh, that is less than two crore, are employed in a factory. Manufacturing, which is largely factories, is stuck at 16 per cent for many, many years."
Highlighting the PM Internship scheme, in which the corporate houses were persuaded to offer internship, Chidambaram said,"1,65,000 offers came. Only 33,000 were accepted. Are there no young men and women to accept an internship in big companies?...and of the 33,000 that were accepted, 6,000 left the job."
"What is wrong with the internship scheme?", he asked, demanding an explanation from Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman as to why the scheme has "totally failed this year".
Pointing out the challenge of "slow growth rate", he said the "Reform Express" mentioned by Sitharaman in her budget speech which is on "its way, and will maintain its momentum to help us fulfil our Kartavya" is stuck and it has not derailed yet.
He pointed out that the nominal growth rate in 2023-24 was 12 per cent. In 2024-25 it came down to 9.8 per cent.
"In 2025-26, the year which will end in a month, it has come down to 8 per cent. Where is the Reform Express gathering momentum?" Chidambaram asked.
Attacking the government's fiscal consolidation steps, he said,"at this rate of fiscal consolidation, it will take 12 years to achieve the FRBM (Fiscal Responsibility and Budget Management (FRBM) target."
The FRBM target was last achieved only in one year -- 2007-08 on the fiscal deficit, he said, adding the fiscal deficit has ballooned.
Chidambaram alleged that the government was able to meet its fiscal deficit target by cutting "total expenditure Rs 1 lakh crore, and the RBI gave a dividend of Rs 3 lakh crore".
"But for these cruel cuts in capital expenditure, but for the bonanza received from the RBI, the fiscal deficit will not be 4.54 per cent, it will be 5.5 per cent," he asserted.
Hitting out at the cuts in allocation for agriculture and rural development, Chidambaram said there is a cut and expenditure of Rs 60,000 crore.
"Agriculture has been cut by Rs 6,985 crore. Rural Development has been cut by Rs 53,067 crore," he said, asking don't rural areas require any development when villages are crying for 'gram roads'.
He also hit out at the government for cutting grants and aids to states by Rs 30,391 crore, while criticising it for spending "only Rs 17,000 crore out of Rs 67,000 crore" earmarked for Jal Jeevan mission for providing drinking water to every household.
Chidambaram also noted that defence expenditure is at an all-time low at 1.6 per cent of GDP and also took a dig at the finance minister for increasing the outlay on electronics component manufacturing scheme to Rs 40,000 crore from Rs 22,919 crore with an allocation of "just Rs 1,500 crore" while no outlay has been announced for the proposed three chemical parks and for the Rs 10,000 crore scheme for container manufacturing.
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Trump says EU has until July 4 to approve last year's trade deal or it will face higher tariffs
Washington (AP): President Donald Trump has said in a social media post that goods from the European Union would face higher tariff rates if the 27-member bloc fails to approve last year's trade framework by July 4.
The announcement on Thursday appeared to be a deadline extension after the president said last Friday that EU autos would face a higher 25 per cent tariff starting this week. Trump made the updated announcement after what he described as a "great call" with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.
Still, the US president was displeased that the European Parliament had yet to finalize the trade arrangement reached last year, which was further complicated in February by the US Supreme Court ruling that Trump lacked the legal authority to declare an economic emergency to impose the initial tariffs used to pressure the EU into talks.
"A promise was made that the EU would deliver their side of the Deal and, as per Agreement, cut their Tariffs to ZERO!" Trump posted. "I agreed to give her until our Country's 250th Birthday or, unfortunately, their Tariffs would immediately jump to much higher levels."
It was unclear from the post whether Trump was implying that the tariff rates would jump on all EU goods or the increase would only apply to autos.
His latest statement indicates he might be backing away from his earlier threat on EU autos by giving the European Parliament several more weeks to approve the agreement.
Under the original terms of the framework, the US would charge a 15 per cent tax on most goods imported from the EU.
But since the Supreme Court ruling, the administration has levied a 10 per cent tariff while investigating trade imbalances and national security issues, aiming to put in new tariffs to make up for lost revenues.
