Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Friday presented the state budget for 2026-27, his historic 17th budget, at the Vidhana Soudha. Let us inform that the total outlay of the Karnataka state budget has been fixed at Rs 4,48,004 crore, with a focus on technology driven growth, infrastructure development and environmental sustainability.
Presenting the budget, Siddaramaiah said Karnataka plays a unique role in national and international trade, and rapid developments in artificial intelligence (AI) are changing global production systems.
He stressed that innovations in science and technology are constantly determining the direction of the state. In this context, he said that this budget has been presented with responsibility and foresight so that it can move ahead with the resolve to “convert fire into light”.
The Chief Minister also highlighted the impact of the rationalization of GST rates done in September 2025. He said that these changes have led to a decline in the state’s GST collection. Before rationalization, Karnataka’s average monthly GST revenue growth in 2025-26 was around 10 per cent (after subtracting refunds).
However, after the implementation of the revised rates, the average monthly growth has dropped to around 4 per cent. This restructuring is expected to reduce the total GST collection by about Rs 10,000 crore in the current financial year and Rs 15,000 crore in the next financial year.
In key announcements, Siddaramaiah said that with the aim of setting up a state-of-the-art AI center of excellence in Bengaluru, two centers will be set up at a total cost of Rs 16 crore in collaboration with the Institute of Bioinformatics and Applied Biotechnology, Center for Cellular and Molecular Platforms and NASSCOM.
He also announced that a leopard rehabilitation center would be set up at Bannerghatta Biological Park to rehabilitate leopards captured from residential areas on the outskirts of Bengaluru, at an estimated cost of Rs 5 crore.
Under the World Bank-funded Karnataka Water Security and Resilience Program (KWSRP), disaster management projects will be launched at a cost of Rs 5,000 crore over five years to tackle the problem of floods in Bengaluru.
Siddaramaiah further announced that as per the revised transfer rules of the Excise Department, transfers of Group-C cadre officers including Excise Inspectors, Excise Sub-Inspectors and Excise Head Constables/Constables have been done through digital counseling to enhance transparency.
The government will also extend digital counseling for transfers of Deputy Superintendents of Excise and Excise Superintendents.