Feb 11, 2026 | 11:38 AM (IST)
The Uttar Pradesh Budget 2026 emphasized women’s safety, social sector investment, and economic expansion. Under the Safe City initiative, the government announced the construction of Working Women Hostels in municipal corporations to provide secure and affordable accommodation for working women in urban areas. The initiative builds on measures such as women police beats, extensive CCTV surveillance, and Anti-Romeo squads to enhance safety at public and workplace locations.
Finance Minister Suresh Khanna stated that the budget allocates 12.4% to education and 6% to healthcare, while 19.5% has been earmarked for capital expenditure to accelerate infrastructure and growth. New schemes worth ₹43,000 crore will be launched, alongside the establishment of a State Data Authority and Data Centre Cluster to strengthen the digital ecosystem. The government has proposed ₹34,468 crore for roads and bridges, ₹3,000 crore for road construction and widening, and ₹18,000 crore for irrigation projects. Ease of Doing Business reforms will continue under the ‘Jan Vishwas’ framework to simplify registrations and licensing, while large-scale skill development and employment-oriented training for youth will be implemented in mission mode.
On the economic front, Uttar Pradesh recorded a GSDP of ₹30.25 lakh crore in 2024-25, marking a 13.4% growth year-on-year. Per capita income has more than doubled from ₹54,564 in 2016-17 to ₹1,09,844, and is projected to reach ₹1.20 lakh in 2025-26. The government also highlighted that over 9 lakh youth have been trained, more than 5 lakh placed in jobs, and the unemployment rate has declined by 2.2%, reflecting improving employment and development indicators in the state.
