Union Budget 2026: A Closer Look At Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman's Team

New Delhi: As Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman delivers the ninth consecutive Budget in Parliament, she has been assisted by a team of experienced bureaucrats across the country.

Here's a closer look at the finance minister's team and the departments that work on the annual Budget.

1. Anuradha Thakur, Economic Affairs Secretary

Also known as the 'primary architect' of the budget, she leads the department and is responsible for deciding the respective allocation of resources and preparing the budget documents for the upcoming fiscal year.

Thakur has been heading the department since July last year, becoming the first woman IAS officer to do so. She is a 1994 batch IAS officer, from the Himachal Pradesh cadre.

2. Arvind Shrivastava, Revenue Secretary

He is responsible for handling direct taxes as well as indirect taxes, and for the tax proposals (which were usually incorporated in Part B of the Budget Speech).

He previously served as Joint Secretary in the Finance Ministry’s Budget Division. Shrivastava is a 1994-batch IAS officer, holding an engineering degree with an MSc in Finance from the University of London. This is his first budget as a Revenue Secretary.

3. Vumlunmang Vualnam, Expenditure Secretary

Also known as the 'guardian of the purse', Vumlunmang Vualnam looks after the government's expenditure, subsidy rationalisation, and the implementation of central schemes.

He works with the department that enforces fiscal discipline to manage the fiscal deficit. He has previously served as Civil Aviation Secretary and Additional Secretary in the Department of Economic Affairs, and is a commerce graduate with a Master’s in Public Policy.

4. M Nagaraju, Financial Services Secretary

Nagaraju is responsible for driving financial inclusion schemes and social security schemes of the government. His department works to look after the financial health of insurance companies, public sector banks, and pension systems.

Nagaraju studied economics and also holds a postgraduate degree in philosophy. He has previously served as the Coal Secretary and is now the longest-serving Secretary in the Finance Ministry.

5. Arunish Chawla, Department of Investment and Public Asset Management (DIPAM) Secretary

Chawla is involved with the Department, which is responsible for the government's disinvestment and privatisation roadmap. Chawla manages the non-tax revenue targets derived from selling stakes in CPSEs.

He is an IAS officer from the 1992 batch of the Bihar cadre. He holds an MSc and a PhD in Economics from the London School of Economics.

6. K Moses Chalai, Department of Public Enterprises Secretary

Chalai heads the Department of Public Enterprises and is responsible for capital expenditure plans of select CPSEs. It also works to keep a check on budgetary allocations and ensure they are used effectively. Asset monetisation and the financial health of state-owned firms also come under their purview.

Besides these six departments, the office of the Chief Economic Adviser also plays a pivotal role in the Union Budget.

7. V Anantha Nageswaran, Chief Economic Adviser

Nageswaran's office provides inputs for the Union Budget that define the overall macroeconomic context of the document, including forecasting economic growth, assessing global risks and analysing sectoral performance (agriculture, industry, services). Nageswaran is the 18th Chief Economic Adviser to the Government of India. He was appointed in January 2022 and will serve until March 2027.

All eyes are on the historic central hall of Parliament as Nirmala Sitharaman is presenting the Union Budget for the 2026-27 financial year in the Lok Sabha today (February 1), marking a rare departure from tradition as it will be the first time the annual Budget is tabled on a Sunday. This landmark session continues to steer India’s journey toward the 'Viksit Bharat' 2047 goal.  

Also read: Union Budget 2026: Poll-Bound Kerala, TN among 4 states To Have Rare Earth Corridors