Can the 2026–27 Budget Close Administrative Loopholes and Deliver Real Welfare?

                                                                                                                        By Dr T V Gopalakrishnan

“Government is in a reform express Phase and  reform is not just Revenue Centric but citizen Centric.Reforms should be brought in all aspects of society and not just in the economy.Laws to be for citizens convenience , not to harass. Ease of Life and Ease of doing Business are top priorities of the Government.”

                                                                                                                                   PM Narendra Modi

The Union Budget for 2026–27 comes at a decisive moment. After eight consecutive budgets, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman enters her ninth with a record of fiscal discipline, steady capital expenditure growth, benign macro economic factors and relative political stability and consensus on macroeconomic direction. Despite occasional friction over tax devolution, her budgets have avoided major criticism from opposition-ruled states—an achievement in itself. In this background the  expectation and clarion call of the PM  referred to above is achievable provided the ensuing  budget is made transformative in character , intent, practical  and result oriented.     

Yet the question remains: Can the coming budget fix the structural and administrative loopholes that prevent India from realising the full benefit of its economic progress?

Fiscal prudence, inflation control, and capital spending have undeniably strengthened India’s foundation. The push toward an advanced economy by 2047 has political commitment and administrative momentum. But on the ground, ordinary citizens still feel the burden of high living costs, uneven data, and a tax structure that often overwhelms rather than empowers. The disconnect between policy intent and lived experience remains wide.

Rationalising Taxes: The Most Urgent Reform

India today has too many taxes, too many levies, and too many names for similar burdens—direct taxes, indirect taxes, GST, tolls, educational cesses, surcharges, service fees, commissions, and charges of various kinds. Every layer adds to the cost of production, cost of living, and public frustration.

This is not about avoiding taxes. Indians understand that the government needs resources for development. What they resent is the feeling of tax harassment, complexity, and mental fatigue created by the sheer number of levies.

The 2026–27 Budget must aim for:

• Fewer taxes, clearer taxes, simpler taxes
  
  

• A unified logic instead of fragmented collections
  
  

• Minimal overlap between central, state, and local levies
  
  

• Predictable rules that encourage voluntary compliance
  
  

If GST rationalisation could dramatically reduce disputes and improve compliance, a similar approach across all taxes can transform public perception and strengthen revenue integrity.

Capital Gains, Buyback Taxation, and Market Participation

India’s capital markets depend on long-term retail investors for depth and stability. Yet existing policies often penalise them.

Buyback taxation needs a relook.

Investors who hold shares through market cycles sacrifice liquidity and often real returns after adjusting for inflation. To tax buybacks as capital gains—on top of taxing dividends in the hands of individuals—undermines the very behaviour that equity markets depend on. Reviewing and removing this levy would boost participation and send a message of policy stability.

Real estate capital gains also need reform.

Linking property gains to income tax slabs is outdated. A separate, inflation-adjusted capital gains system—levied at the time of transaction, routed through banks and registrars, with strict KYC—will reduce evasion, eliminate cash dealings, and bring transparency without punishing genuine sellers.

Securities Transaction Tax (STT)

STT is non-inflationary and can be calibrated intelligently. A differentiated rate for buy and sell trades could help reduce excessive volatility, discourage speculation, and reinforce market stability.

Capital markets thrive when taxation rewards patience and transparency—not turnover and loopholes. This budget can correct that imbalance.

Administration, Data Integrity, and Leakages: India’s Blind Spot

India’s biggest gap is not policy ambition but administrative capacity. Weak data and incomplete tracking undermine even the best-designed fiscal measures.

Employment in metros and semi-urban centres has grown sharply—security services, domestic work, drivers, retail vendors, catering, teachers, small entrepreneurs, priests, maintenance workers. These workers keep the economy running, yet their contribution barely shows in official data. When data is inaccurate, policy becomes distorted.

Even the IMF has raised concerns and gave a C grade for its national accounts citing methodical issues like an outdated 2011-12 base year, single deflation methods and unexplained discrepancies which “somewhat hamper Surveillance”.  

The Budget must therefore push for:

• Real-time data integration across ministries
  
  

• Stronger administrative capacity to detect leakages
  
  

• AI-based verification of employment, income flows, and service output in particular
  
  

• A much clearer picture of the informal economy and evasion of taxes.
  
  

• Seamless linking of subsidies, welfare, and productivity data
  
  

If India can track its workforce and income flows more accurately, it can eliminate black money far more effectively than by periodic crackdowns.

Land, Labour, and Legal Reforms: Completing the Foundation

Labour reforms have been announced. But without complementary land reforms and legal system reforms, India cannot build a truly modern economic framework.

A functional judicial system, clear land records, and predictable regulation are essential for investment, manufacturing, and ease of living. Budget 2026–27 should continue nudging states toward these long-pending structural reforms.

Once these three pillars converge, annual budgets will truly become exercises in fine-tuning rather than firefighting.

The Emotional and Civic Dimension of Welfare

Economic policy cannot ignore sentiment. People care about dignity, peace, and a basic sense of fairness. They want stable prices, accessible public spaces, functioning civic infrastructure, and freedom from harassment.

Inflation—especially food inflation—hits the poorest hardest. Strengthening supply chains, modernising ration shops, and improving distribution systems do not require massive spending; they require accountability and empathy.

  The Budget can perhaps  incentivise:

• Social reformers, civic groups, and volunteers to educate , guide and enhance the quality and outcome of services .
  
  

• CSR participation in parks, public spaces, festivals, and social audits
  
  

• Institutional responsibility for civic sense—banks, police stations, educational Institutions corporates, Charitable Institutions, Temple authorities and organisations like Tourism Departments, Travel agents and volunteers specifically identified exclusively to develop civic sense.
  
  

A cleaner, kinder, more responsive environment raises welfare far beyond monetary income.

Towards a Budget That Truly Delivers

India has the talent, technology, and political stability to design a budget that is not just fiscally sound but administratively transformative.

The 2026–27 Budget should aim to:

1. Simplify taxes and eliminate overlapping levies
   
   

2. Reform capital gains and market taxation
   
   

3. Strengthen administrative systems and data integrity
   
   

4. Support long-pending land and legal reforms
   
   

5. Enhance the everyday quality of life for citizens

A budget built on clarity, dignity, and administrative strength can unlock the next phase of India’s growth and ensure that citizens truly feel the benefits—enjoy , share happiness and feel as contributors to the economic growth in letter and spirit.  

Dr T V Gopalakrishnan

(personal Views)

( This Article is published in Money Life on 15/12/ 2025)

Puttennahalli Lake :A living Heritage that needs care and attention always.

 Puttenahalli Lake: A Living Heritage That Deserves Our Care

The Puttenahalli Lake continues to be a lifeline for thousands of residents living in and around the area. With its well-maintained rainwater inflow, treated water from neighbouring high-rises, and its vibrant ecosystem of birds throughout the year, the lake stands as a precious natural asset. The carefully nurtured plants and trees, along with the neatly laid footpaths, make it an inviting space for morning walkers, nature lovers, and all who seek better health and quality time in a serene environment. It is truly a blessing of nature—one that deserves sustained protection for the sake of its flora, fauna, and aesthetic charm.

The South City community, which shares a deep physical, emotional, and sentimental connection with the lake, has played an extraordinary role in its development and upkeep. Under the leadership of Mrs. Usha Rajagopalan, the dedicated and committed team has, for over two decades to my personal knowledge, worked tirelessly—often overcoming constraints and hurdles—to nurture the lake and make it a place of pride and attraction for everyone. Their contribution is well-known and deeply appreciated.

It is my sincere hope that Puttenahalli Lake will continue to retain its glory, beauty, and ecological richness, serving the surrounding community for many decades to come. With continued innovation, commitment, and environmental stewardship, may the lake only grow in splendour and significance.

Dr. T. V. Gopalakrishnan

A well wisher of this Lake. 

Both travellers and flyers cannot be harassed and squeezed . They are the Lifeline for the Airlines and the emerging economy.

 Dear Sir,

Apropos your editorial DGCA, get a grip, clear the Air (ET  dated 8th Dec )Indigo cannot be allowed to go scot free and free itself from Air at its own will and pleasure .Trust of the flyers is its major capital.  DGCA also cannot take a lenient view of its regulated entities and their failure to adhere to the safety norms by enforcement of the standards envisaged for pilot rostering regulations. The timing chosen by Indigo  to harass the travelling public to disrupt the air services is most untimely and unjustifiable not only from Customers angle but also from the angle of keeping the nation's image as the fastest upcoming country having tourism as one of its most attractive economic activities with forex implications. This crisis is avoidable and should have been avoided at any cost. The GOI does its best to support the aviation industry and the standards of safety cannot be undermined by any airlines in the interests of consumers and safety of all crew members and others. The grievances if any should be sorted out amicably with the concerned authorities  and definitely without inconveniencing the travellers who have also values for their money, time, emotions and sentiments. The stance taken by the airline in not refunding the fare in full  to those who have been affected with this crisis is not fair and the affected customers should be taken care of by the Airlines without any room for complaints in the matter. Customer satisfaction is the ultimate success for any Customer oriented Industry.   

T.V.Gopalakrishnan

( Edited version of this letter was sent to ET  on the 8th. ) 

Is it not time to tame the Assets from Inflation and contain Speculative Investments

 Dear Sir,

This refers to your editorial Crypto's wild west moves need taming.(ET 2nd Dec) The  fluctuations seen in Cryptocurrency these days are abnormally abnormal and It is now time to tame the Investors ,  speculative assets and the classes of people who have all assets and wealth to speculate and make the market jittery and unhealthy by sensible regulatory and supervisory initiatives. The cryptocurrencies and stable coins though may have gained currencies and have come to occupy a reasonable  space in the market in terms of participation despite reluctance and acceptance by majority of market players and participants, the continued disturbance , speculative tendencies , and  their own uncertainties as a viable financial products definitely cause a disturbance and irritation perhaps to authorities, the economy and and the stability of the financial market.. In such a scenario, it is advisable to have an open debate and review of the continued existence of such products and their merits and demerits to help the financial system and the  capital and money market and their much needed stability to support the Government and its national objectives.  The curbs if any on these speculative transactions can definitely help to contain the unabated  inflation wildly seen in Gold, silver , real estate and other undesirable activities.  

T V Gopalakrishnan

( This letter was sent to ET on @nd Dec 25). 

Name loses its primacy and is being replaced by Numbers.

 

The Name Was Everything—Until Numbers Took Over

A name, once upon a time, meant everything. It carried one’s identity, lineage, culture, and belonging. Numbers were nowhere in sight. Today, however, they have quietly replaced names and become our new identifiers.

I, bearing the name T. V. Gopalakrishnan, was born and brought up in Palakkad—a district in Kerala known for its conservative lifestyle and its deep agricultural roots. When I entered first standard in 1954, I officially became “Gopalakrishnan,” though at home I answered to affectionate pet names, each reflecting the intimacy of the relationship with the person calling me.

As I approached the X Standard public examination, the authorities insisted that every student finalise their name; any change later would be cumbersome. With youthful enthusiasm and family tradition in mind, I declared my full name as Gopalakrishnan T V—Gopalakrishnan as my personal name, T for my village Thrithamara, and V for my father’s name, Venkatachalam. In those days, no one complained about long names or the time taken to write them. A name carried a story, and we took pride in wearing it fully. Of course, this long name was often an irritation for officials—particularly at international airports—when they struggled to match the visa with the passport entries.

Through school, college, and postgraduate studies, this name journeyed with me. When I earned my postgraduate degree, adding it after my name felt like an honour—an unspoken badge of aspiration and achievement. Gradually, the etiquette of the time nudged me to place my initials at the front and my qualifications at the end. Every degree added a new suffix; every stage of life added a new nuance.

In the late 1960s, I began my career as a Lecturer in a reputed college in Coimbatore—a Tamil Nadu city known for textiles, engineering excellence, and its forever-pleasant climate. Life was comfortable, stable, and filled with academic possibilities. Names in Tamil Nadu reflected a culture quite different from that of Kerala.

Yet destiny had other plans. A delayed job offer from a major institution redirected me to Mumbai—an abrupt shift from a peaceful town to a bustling metropolis. But professionally, Mumbai proved transformative. It broadened my worldview and exposed me to every shade of human experience—materialism, spirituality, struggle, privilege, and the deeper values that anchor life.

It was in Mumbai that I encountered an entirely different universe of naming conventions. Forms suddenly demanded “surname,” “first name,” “middle name,” “last name”—each interpreted differently across agencies. Ration cards, driving licences, passports, PAN, Aadhaar, railway and airline bookings—every standardised form required perfect consistency across dozens of documents. What had once been a simple, dignified matter of identity now became a bureaucratic puzzle. In some places, my village name, Thrithamara, became my name; in others, my father’s name took that place. My own name, Gopalakrishnan, slowly lost its primacy—at least in the world of forms, records, and travel documents. There were moments of embarrassment, but I eventually learned to compromise with whatever the situation demanded.

As life progressed, so did the titles. Earning a PhD brought both the honour of “Dr.” and the deep satisfaction of academic achievement. Dr became a prefix and educational qualifications a sufix to my name.   But soon, technology and administrative reforms swept through quietly and decisively and to my surprise—followed by reluctant acceptance—names and degrees gradually began losing their importance.

 Numbers had taken over.

Today, we are recognised not by our names but by Aadhaar numbers, PAN numbers, mobile numbers, pension IDs, provident fund accounts, and insurance codes. These numerical identities, though impersonal, have undeniably made life convenient, simpler, faster, and more efficient. And so, after decades, a curious realisation dawns: Numbers help not to expose the religion, caste, race , gender, status in society and brings in equity and equality to the advantage of humanity in general .

 The world now prefers our numbers to our names.

Names still carry emotion, heritage, and personal pride. But for systems, processes, and daily transactions, it is our numbers that matter far more. Perhaps, then, the modern advice to new parents should be: Choose a beautiful name for sentiment—and be ready for the various systems to assign a dozen numbers for convenience.

Sarve Jana Sukhino Bhavanthu.

T V G Krishnan

(personal Views).

Let Artificial Intelligence Help Cure the Economy's Ailments

 

“Let AI Help Cure the Economy’s Ailments”

India has the natural abundance, human talent and a civilisational wisdom that should by now have translated into broad prosperity. Yet 75 years after independence many old ills — corruption, black money, inequality, poor public infrastructure, tax evasion, and uneven delivery of services Social Justice in particular — persist. The paradox is stark: a nation with Nobel laureates, leading scientists and great thinkers continues to suffer avoidable deprivation while a small fraction parades luxury.

This is not only an economic failure and absence of social justice but also ; it is a failure of systems, incentives and governance. Politics, sometimes driven by short-term electoral gains, can warp policy: freebies displace fiscal discipline, regulatory gaps invite abuse, and influence enables insiders to exploit loopholes. The result is a loss of public trust and the squandering of national potential.

Technology — and in particular Artificial Intelligence — is not a panacea. But when deployed thoughtfully, ethically, and at scale it can be the most practical remedy for many entrenched problems. AI can strengthen transparency, detect malpractice, improve delivery of social services, and redesign public administration so that honesty and competence are rewarded rather than undermined.

Imagine tax systems that use machine-assisted analytics to spot suspicious flows and close leakages, without harassing honest citizens. Imagine procurement and tendering platforms that are fully transparent, tamper-resistant and auditable; judicial and case-management tools that reduce delay and frustration; land- and records-management systems that cut out middlemen; and public health and education platforms that deliver personalised learning and care to remote villages. All of these are feasible today.

But technology must be married to ethics. AI systems must be explainable, regulated and subject to independent audit so they do not replicate bias or become new tools for exclusion. Digital rollouts must be accompanied by digital-literacy programmes so the poorest are not left further behind. And governance must be reformed to protect public interest: rules, firewalls and statutory accountability must keep pace with technical capacity.

Equally important is the cultural aspect. India’s philosophical heritage—its emphasis on duty, compassion and the common good—can provide the ethical compass for technological change. Reviving those values in public life, while equipping institutions with modern tools, could produce a synergy the country desperately needs.

The task is urgent. Greed, short-termism and opaque power structures have hollowed out parts of the system. Reversing that requires political will, institutional redesign and wide public engagement. Artificial Intelligence can help expose and prevent malpractices, make public administration efficient and humane, and enable policies that are evidence-based rather than interest-driven.

Let us aspire, not merely to be wealthier, but to be wiser custodians of our resources — human, natural and moral. If deployed with care and integrity, technology and AI can accelerate that transformation and help realise the promise of a just, prosperous India: a nation where “Vasudev Kutumbakam” is more than poetic aspiration — it is the policy outcome.

May noble thought translate into noble action and bring in highly desirable and most enviable results

Sarve Jana Sukhino Bhavanthu.

T V G Krishnan

(Personal Views)

Bridge Sham on the River scam

 This refers to article “Where is the money going?”, by Kum Kum DasGupta (NOV6) . A large part of public  money    appears to drain away without commensurate creation of durable physical or social infrastructure. While a few benefit disproportionately, the taxpayer is left to wonder why our cities are collapsing even as the economy expands and ambitious visions are announced. Governance and accountability appear to be missing in the management of public finances—and, increasingly, in private financial systems as well. It is time to revamp our financial reporting architecture so that accounts, reports and certifications not only capture numbers but are aligned with the stated vision, mission and outcomes of institutions. Financial statements must reflect performance against purpose, not merely compliance with procedure.

T V Gopalakrishnan

BENGALURU. 

( THIS appeared in ET dated 7th Nov 2025).