India, Jan. 24 -- As India awaits the Union Budget 2026, to be presented by finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman in the Parliament on Sunday, February 1, taxpayers are keenly watching for possible changes to the income tax, levied by the central government.

India's tax history dates back to the post-independence era, when the income tax had 11 tax slabs. Over the years, consecutive governments have revised the taxation system, and India now has seven tax slabs under the New Tax Regime introduced in the Union Budget 2025.

Here is a look at how income tax slabs have been revised in the Union Budgets over the last two decades:

Dr Manmohan Singh, as the finance minister of the country, revised the income tax slabs as he reduced the slabs to...