Gujarat's Rs 4.08 lakh crore outlay targets ‘Olympic-ready’ Ahmedabad, tourism push and new mining project

Ahmedabad: The Gujarat government on Wednesday tabled its budget for the financial year 2026-27 with an outlay of over Rs 4 lakh crores, an overall increase of 10.2 percent compared to the previous budget. Some of the highlights of the annual budget were allocation of funds for creating sports infrastructure for making "Olympic-ready Ahmedabad", and promoting tourism in the state and launching "Wed in Gujarat" campaign besides a Rs 100 crore fund for establishing Namo central library in Gandhinagar.

Gujarat finance minister Kanubhai Desai presented a Rs 4,08,053 crore budget with an absolute increase of Rs 37,803 crore over the 2025-26 budget. Desai, after presenting the budget in the assembly, said in the media briefing that it was a "balanced budget" in which no new taxes have been introduced or increased.

As was being expected, the state government announced an allocation of Rs 1331 crore for the sports sector, majority of which will be spent in improving sports facilities in Ahmedabad and Gandhinagar districts. The government has made a provision of Rs 500 crore for making an Ahmedabad "an Olympic-ready city".

Separate funds have been allocated for the development of "world-class sporting infrastructure and modern transport facilities" in preparation for the Commonwealth Games 2030 and the Olympics 2036.

The government announced a Rs 90 crore fund for the construction of a "world-class" hockey stadium, Rs 100 crore for a Para High-Performance Centre in Gandhinagar, and another Rs 100 crore for the creation of "Olympic-level infrastructure" at Karai in Gandhinagar district.

One sector, where the Gujarat government has focused in this budget is promotion of the tourism industry. Desai said that the state has declared 2026 as the "Gujarat Tourism Year" "to enhance Gujarat's domestic and global appeal among tourists." Through the budget, the state government has launched a "Wed in Gujarat" campaign to position the state as a "premier wedding destination."

In one of the significant moves, the Gujarat government announced a provision of Rs 613 crore for "Ambaji Copper Project", state's first underground copper-lead-zinc mine. The finance minister announced that the project aims to utilise underused resources to achieve self-reliance and reduce imports.