NEW DELHI: The Union Budget 2026–27 has recorded a modest increase in allocations for children, with child-related spending rising to Rs 1,32,296.85 crore, up from Rs 1,16,132.5 crore in 2025–26, according to a child rights NGO.
Compared to the previous Budget (25-26), the share of the child budget in the overall Union Budget 26-27 has increased from 2.29 per cent to 2.47 per cent, while allocations as a percentage of GDP have increased marginally from 0.33 per cent to 0.34 per cent, said CRY - Child Rights and You.
According to Puja Marwaha, Chief Executive Officer (CEO), CRY - Child Rights and You, “While this signals positive intent, the overall scale of investment remains limited when viewed against India’s demographic realities and the growing developmental needs of children.”
“Incremental increases in health, nutrition and education are welcome, but achieving inclusive and sustainable growth will require sharper prioritisation of children, with stronger and more equitable investments that go beyond marginal year-on-year gains,” she said.
“The Union Budget 2026-27 reflects a modest but notable uptick in allocations for children, signalling incremental progress rather than a transformative shift in fiscal prioritisation,” the statement from CRY said.
Analysing the child-related budget allocations for the past 10 years, the NGO said, that between 2016-17 and 2018-19, the Core Child Budget accounts for around 3.3 per cent of the Union Budget, with the share recorded at 3.32 per cent in both 2016-17 and 2017-18, and 3.24 per cent in 2018-19.
The share increased marginally to 3.29 per cent in 2019-20, before declining to 3.16 per cent in 2020-21.
A sharper reduction is observed from 2021-22 onwards, when the share of the Core Child Budget falls to 2.46 per cent of the Union Budget. This declining trend continues in subsequent years, with the share recorded at 2.35 per cent in 2022-23, 2.31 per cent in 2023-24, and 2.28 per cent in 2024-25, it said.
In 2025-26, the share of the Core Child Budget shows a marginal increase to 2.29 per cent, though it remains below the levels observed during the period 2016-17 to 2020-21.
“Overall, the data shows that while the absolute allocations to the Core Child Budget have increased over time, its share in the total Union Budget has declined over the longer period, with only a slight stabilisation in the most recent year,” said CRY, which has been working with over 3,000,000 underprivileged children, across 19 states in India.
With children constituting close to one-third of the total population of India, it is a very important parameter underscoring the growth trajectory of the country, and also a pointer indicating the priority and commitment set by the country to its younger citizens, the NGO said.
Giving further details, the NGO said, the budget allocations for the Flexible Pool for Reproductive and Child Health (RCH), Health System Strengthening, National Health Programme (NHM) and National Urban Health Mission have increased by Rs. 261.15 crore to Rs, 4,591.58 crore.
Saksham Anganwadi and Poshan 2.0 has seen a 5.19 per cent rise, with allocations increasing by Rs.969 crore to Rs. 19,635 crore.
The Poshan 2.0 programme is the government’s flagship nutrition initiative aimed at addressing malnutrition among children, adolescent girls, and pregnant and lactating women through supplementary nutrition interventions, and the increase could support wider coverage and more consistent delivery of nutrition services at the Anganwadi level.
The PM Poshan Shakti Nirman scheme has received a 2 per cent increase, rising to Rs. 2,749.99 crore.
Significantly, the Jal Jeevan Mission has been reintroduced into the Child Budget after financial year 2024-25, with an allocation of Rs. 6,736.36 crore, underscoring the centrality of safe drinking water to child health outcomes.
Mission Vatsalya has seen a marginal increase of 3.33 per cent, reaching Rs. 1,550 crore. Samagra Shiksha Abhiyan has been allocated Rs. 42,100 crore, a 2.06 per cent rise over the previous year.
Allocations for Eklavya Model Residential Schools have increased sharply by over 20 per cent to Rs. 7,200 crore, reflecting a stronger focus on educational access for tribal children.
Navodaya Vidyalayas and Kendriya Vidyalayas have also received higher allocations.
The substantial allocation of Rs. 3,200 crore for Atal Tinkering Labs in 2026-27 signals renewed emphasis on innovation and scientific temper in government schools, while the inclusion of the Skill India Programme in the Child Budget aligns with the National Education Policy vision of integrating vocational education early.
However, several scholarship schemes for children from marginalised communities remain largely stagnant. Allocations for pre- and post-matric scholarships for Scheduled Castes have seen no increase, while scholarships for OBCs, EBCs, DNTs and children with disabilities have registered only marginal rises, the NGO pointed out.
While the Programme for Development of Scheduled Tribes (PM Vanbandhu Kalyan Yojana) has seen a substantial increase, the overall picture suggests uneven attention to equity-focused interventions, it added.
“Taken together, the Child Budget 2026-27 reflects incremental gains rather than transformative investment. If India is to advance on a path of inclusive and sustainable growth, future budgets must move beyond marginal increases and place children more firmly at the centre of fiscal planning, backed by scale, equity, and long-term vision,” the NGO said.