In Mumbai, on February 25, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) proposed a budget of ₹80,952.56 crore for the 2026-27 fiscal year, representing an 8.77% increase over the 2025-26 budget estimate. The budget prioritizes infrastructure expansion and urban mobility.
BMC Commissioner Bhushan Gagrani presented the budget, with capital expenditure estimated at ₹48,164.28 crore, an increase of about 11.59% over the revised estimate of ₹39,159.51 crore for 2025-26.
The capital outlay for 2025-26 was originally estimated at ₹43,162.23 crore, but was subsequently revised downwards.
A significant portion of the capital outlay is allocated to core infrastructure projects, including improvement schemes, the education fund, water supply, sewerage, and the tree authority. This amounts to ₹30,069.89 crore.
₹13,990 crore is earmarked for the Coastal Road, the Goregaon-Mulund Link Road (GMLR), sewage treatment plants (STPs), and other infrastructure projects. Capital expenditure for special projects is proposed at ₹4,104.39 crore.
Notably, the BMC has announced the deployment of ₹36,623.09 crore from its fixed deposits to fund critical infrastructure projects across the city under the 2026-27 budget.
The BMC's total fixed deposits stand at ₹81,449.32 crore. Of this, ₹44,826.23 crore is committed towards long-term liabilities such as pension funds and contractor security deposits, while ₹36,623.09 crore is available for key infrastructure works under the ambitious urban transformation plan.
Under "Mega Mumbai Makeover," the BMC has pegged capital expenditure at ₹48,164.28 crore, accounting for nearly 60% of the total outlay.
Major allocations include ₹4,000 crore for the Versova-Dahisar stretch of the Mumbai Coastal Road (North), ₹5,690 crore for the modernization of sewage treatment plants, and ₹5,520.48 crore for the ongoing road concretisation project.
The Goregaon-Mulund Link Road project has been allocated ₹2,650 crore. For water security, ₹6,475 crore has been proposed, including ₹500 crore for the Manori desalination plant and ₹437.51 crore for the Gargai project.
The civic body has also earmarked ₹7,456.80 crore for the healthcare sector, focusing on the completion of several multi-speciality and peripheral hospitals by 2026-27.
To regulate street vending, the civic body has announced a QR code-based certification system for authorised street vendors as part of the 2026-27 budget.
The BMC stated that the process of issuing QR-based certificates to authorised hawkers is underway. This initiative aims to create a verifiable digital database of legitimate vendors and curb unauthorized hawking through on-ground verification using scannable codes.
The QR initiative forms part of a broader technological push, which includes the deployment of AI-enabled assistance for citizens and civic staff and advanced video analytics software linked to more than 1,150 CCTV cameras for enhanced urban surveillance.
The budget also allocates substantial funds for infrastructure and transport projects.
A sum of ₹9,650 crore has been earmarked for the Bridges Department, covering projects such as the Goregaon-Mulund Link Road (GMLR) and the northern stretch of the Mumbai Coastal Road from Versova to Dahisar.
The Roads and Traffic Department has been granted ₹6,875 crore, primarily for concreting of major roads and junction improvements.
In addition, the BMC stated that digital payment facilities for property tax and water charges through UPI and QR codes would be facilitated in the coming year, signalling a wider shift towards cashless civic transactions.
The BMC is also exploring the raising of funds through municipal bonds, particularly for water supply projects such as the Gargai dam.
On the revenue side, the BMC expects total revenue income of ₹51,510.94 crore in 2026-27, up 19.35% over the 2025-26 budget estimate of ₹43,159.40 crore.
The budget projects a surplus of ₹89.84 crore for 2026-27, compared to ₹60.65 crore in the 2025-26 estimate and ₹97.98 crore in the revised estimate for the current fiscal.
Property tax revenue, one of the BMC's key income sources, is projected at ₹7,000 crore for 2026-27, compared to the revised estimate of ₹6,200 crore for 2025-26.
Revenue expenditure for 2026-27 is proposed at ₹32,698.44 crore, about 15.71% higher than the revised estimate of ₹28,257.91 crore for 2025-26.
The Congress and Shiv Sena (UBT) criticised the Budget, alleging it was designed to benefit contractors and terming it the BJP's roadmap to loot citizens, and targeting the administration over its announcement to use FDs for critical infra.
