India, Feb. 1 -- Indian equity markets witnessed a sharp decline marked by heightened volatility on Sunday as Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman presented the Union Budget 2026-27 in Parliament.

The 30-share BSE Sensex was down 866.69 points at 81,403.09 around 2:55 pm. The NSE Nifty fell 256 points to 25,063.85.

During noon trade, the sell-off intensified, with the Sensex plunging nearly 1,600 points, while the Nifty dropped more than 500 points before recovering partially.

Meanwhile, according to the First Advance Estimates released by the National Statistics Office (NSO), India's real GDP is projected to grow at 7.4 per cent in FY 2025-26, with nominal GDP growth estimated at 8 per cent, the Finance Ministry said in a stateme...