Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced on February 1 a comprehensive Union Budget 2026 initiative to establish five regional medical hubs through strategic partnerships with private hospitals, marking a significant milestone in India's healthcare and medical tourism sectors. According to CNBC TV18 , the scheme will involve collaboration with leading private sector hospitals to create these specialized regional hubs.

Strategic Public-Private Partnership Model

The Finance Minister's budget announcement outlines a public-private partnership approach to create dedicated infrastructure for medical value tourism. This initiative represents a focused strategy toward establishing specialized centers that can cater to both domestic and international patients while leveraging the expertise of established private healthcare networks.

Key Healthcare Industry Partners

The scheme involves collaboration with prominent healthcare providers across hospital services and diagnostic sectors. The partnership structure ensures comprehensive medical tourism infrastructure development through established industry leaders.

Comprehensive Workforce Development

A crucial component of the medical tourism initiative includes training 1.5 lakh caregivers to support the enhanced medical tourism infrastructure. This workforce development strategy aims to ensure adequate support services for international patients seeking medical treatment in India, complementing the establishment of the five regional hubs.

Medical Tourism Market Positioning

The establishment of these five regional medical hubs through private sector partnerships represents India's strategic approach to competing more effectively in the global medical tourism market. By combining government infrastructure support with private sector expertise, the initiative is designed to create specialized centers that maintain high standards of medical care while attracting international patients to India's healthcare facilities.

India has proposed revisions to guidelines governing non-debt foreign exchange management as part of the Union Budget 2026 policy framework. The suggestion reflects the government's ongoing efforts to refine foreign exchange regulations and align them with evolving economic conditions.

Policy Framework Updates

The proposed revisions to non-debt foreign exchange management guidelines represent a significant policy consideration within the Union Budget 2026 discussions. These guidelines typically govern various aspects of foreign exchange transactions that do not involve debt instruments, including trade-related payments, remittances, and other non-debt capital flows.

Regulatory Implications

The suggestion to revise these guidelines indicates the government's recognition of the need to update existing foreign exchange management frameworks. Such revisions could potentially impact how businesses and individuals conduct foreign exchange transactions outside the debt category, though specific details of the proposed changes have not been disclosed.

The inclusion of this proposal in the Union Budget 2026 framework demonstrates the government's systematic approach to reviewing and updating financial regulations as part of broader economic policy planning.