India, Feb. 1 -- As India's Union Budget has evolved over decades, only a few finance ministers have had the chance to shape the country's economic policy through multiple Budget speeches. On February 1, 2026, when Nirmala Sitharaman stood up in the Lok Sabha to present the Union Budget, she was not just announcing taxes and government spending but also strengthening her place in history as India's longest-serving Finance Minister to deliver consecutive Budgets. Since first presenting the Budget in 2019, she has now delivered nine Budgets in a row, including full and interim ones, all of which are officially counted in government records.

However, Dalal Street reacted negatively to this year's Budget. On Budget day, Indian equity markets...