New Delhi, Feb 1 : Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Sunday announced a capital expenditure of Rs 12.2 lakh crore in the Budget for 2026-27, to boost big-ticket infrastructure projects for growth and jobs in the economy.

Presenting the Budget, the Finance Minister said that an Infrastructure Risk Development Fund would be set up to accelerate the development of big projects.

She said to push economic growth, the Budget proposes to deliver a powerful push to infrastructure, including highways, ports, railways and power projects, scale up manufacturing in 7 strategic sectors and create champion MSMEs.

The government has maintained fiscal prudence and monetary stability whilst maintaining a strong thrust on public investments, she said, stressing that India must deeply integrate with global markets, exporting more and attracting foreign investment as well.

The Finance Minister said that the government has undertaken comprehensive reforms towards creating employment, boosting productivity and accelerating growth. "Over 350 reforms have been rolled out, and the 'Reforms Express' is well on its way, and India will continue to take confident steps towards Viksit Bharat, balancing ambition with inclusion," she said.

Sithamaraman said that the Union Budget prepared in Kartivya Bhavan is based on three "karatavyas" (duties). "We are inspired by three kartavya: accelerate and sustain economic growth, fulfill aspirations of people and build capacity, and the third is to ensure that every family, community, and region has access to resources."

The first kartavya is to scale up manufacturing in seven strategic and frontier sectors, she said.

She said that the first requirement is to sustain the moment of momentum of structural reforms, continuous, adaptive and forward-looking.

"Cutting-edge technologies, including AI, can serve as growth multipliers," she added.

"Over 350 reforms have been rolled out; As a growing economy with expanding trade and capital needs, India must also remain deeply integrated with global markets," she added.

/IANS