Just a little nudge.

"As India prepares for the Union Budget, salaried individuals and middle-class taxpayers are hoping for relief measures to ease financial stress and boost disposable income. With direct and indirect tax collections at robust levels, expectations are high for reforms that balance relief with growth," wrote Homi Mistry. In 2019, corporate tax rate was reduced to an effective rate of 25.17%, inclusive of surcharge and cess. For a new investment, the effective rate was even lower at 17.01%. pib.gov.in. In 2025, the threshold for personal income tax was raised to Rs 1.20 million and to Rs 1.275 million for salaried individuals. Bajaj Finance. If tax collections have been robust, why "India's fiscal deficit for April to November, of the first eight months of this fiscal year, was at Rs 9.76 trillion, equivalent to 62.3% of annual estimates, widening from the previous year's 52.5%?" ET. In 2023-24, 6% of the population filed income tax returns. However, in 2022-23, 63% of filers did not pay any income tax. PRS. We do not know how many people would have dropped out of the tax bracket after the increase in income tax threshold. However, the 2025 Budget estimated income tax revenue to rise 14.4%, from Rs 12.57 trillion in 2024-25 to Rs 14.38 trillion in this financial year. PRS. This acts as a target for income tax (IT) officials who then resort to unjustified demands, known as 'tax terrorism' in India (ET), with the result that around 600,000 disputed tax cases, amounting to a total of over Rs 16 trillion, are pending before courts (BW). To fulfill their targets, "Under its 'nudge' initiative, the tax department sent automated alerts asking taxpayers to re-evaluate their 2024-25 returns and revise them before 31 December 2025. I-T officials have used Artificial Intelligence, Annual Information Statement, Form 16 and foreign reporting mechanisms to issue such alerts." ET. IT officials have corrupted Prof Richard Thaler's Nobel Prize winning 'Nudge Theory' to help people BBC) into a weapon and utilised AI and other tech tools terrorise legitimate taxpayers. "The daily average price of various crude grades (popularly known as Indian basket) dipped to $59.29 a barrel." "A research report by State Bank of India (SBI) said...that crude oil prices would 'soften significantly in 2026' to touch $50 per barrel by 2026." HT. This would be of no benefit to Indian citizens because the government intends to levy taxes on the windfall gains of fuel retailing companies, instead of reducing fuel prices at pumps. HT. Toll collections on national highways are expected to cross Rs 1 trillion in financial year 2026-27, about 25% higher than Rs 750 billion this year. ET. High cost of fuel translates to high transport cost which affects prices of all goods and services, causing inflation. Inflation erodes wealth so that savings of Rs 100 million, which looks luxurious today, will be worth just Rs 15 million in 30 years with an average inflation rate of 6-7%, calculated Chartered Accountant Nitin Kaushik. ET. The Budget is another eyewash. A nudge for us, a cudgel for IT.