India’s federal budget for 2026–27 included a targeted initiative for the design sector, proposing the establishment of a new National Institute of Design (NID) in the eastern region to address workforce shortages and strengthen design education, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said in her budget speech to parliament on Saturday.
Presenting the proposal, Finance Minister Sitharaman said the Indian design industry is expanding rapidly but continues to face a shortage of Indian designers. She said this gap in skills and institutional capacity requires dedicated public intervention to support the sector’s growth.
To address this, the Finance Minister proposed to establish a new National Institute of Design through a challenge route. The budget speech stated that the objective of the institute would be to boost design education and development specifically in the eastern region of India.
Finance Minister Sitharaman did not specify the exact location, funding allocation, or timeline for the proposed institute, but positioned it as part of the government’s broader efforts to expand higher education and professional training infrastructure.
The proposal for the new NID was presented immediately after measures for the Orange Economy, which includes animation, visual effects, gaming and comics (AVGC), signalling the government’s emphasis on creative and knowledge-based industries in the budget.
In her speech, Finance Minister Sitharaman framed the design initiative within the government’s second “kartavya” or duty: to fulfil the aspirations of the people and build their capacity as partners in India’s economic progress. She said expanding professional pathways was a key priority of the 2026–27 budget.
The Finance Minister did not announce any sector-specific fiscal deficit targets, revenue figures, or taxation changes related to the design sector. No borrowing plans, capital expenditure numbers, or separate budgetary allocations for design were mentioned in the speech.
The proposal for a new National Institute of Design was listed alongside other education-related initiatives in the budget, including plans for university townships, girls’ hostels in STEM institutions, and investments in telescope infrastructure for astrophysics and astronomy.
Finance Minister Sitharaman said the design sector initiative, along with measures in education, creative industries and skills development, forms part of the government’s broader strategy to strengthen human capital and professional capabilities across emerging sectors of the economy.