SHE-Marts for rural women-led enterprises support sustainable empowerment: Prabhat Chaturvedi
FinTech BizNews Service
Mumbai, 9 February 2026: In her Budget speech in the Parliament, Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman stated that the deduction, which is already available to a primary cooperative society engaged in supplying milk, oilseeds, fruits or vegetables raised or grown by its members, will be extended to also include supply of cattle feed and cotton seed produced by its members. Inter-cooperative society dividend income will be allowed as deduction under the new tax regime to the extent it is further distributed to its members. In addition, an exemption of three years is to be allowed to dividend income received by a notified national cooperative federation, on their investments made in companies up to 31.1.2026, for dividends further distributed to its member co-operatives.
Strengthening Federated Cooperatives
Prabhat Chaturvedi, CEO, National Urban Cooperative Finance and Development of Corporation Ltd. (NUCFDC), explains:
“Union Budget 2026 signals continuity in India's long-term development vision. The structural reforms reinforce India's position as a dependable economic leader and show a strong commitment of Government towards improving global competitiveness.
Cooperative-focused tax measures will strengthen federated cooperatives. Deductions for member-produced cattle feed and cotton seed, along with exemptions on inter-cooperative dividends, will deepen income linkages. It will improve capital circulation and boost balance sheet efficiency. The time-bound dividend exemption for national cooperative federations will help them mobilise and reinvest more capital into member institutions.
The proposed high-level committee on Banking for Viksit Bharat is a timely macro-financial step. India is moving towards more credit- and investment-led growth, and the banking system must be future-ready. A structural review can improve capital deployment, strengthen risk monitoring, and address emerging balance sheet pressures. This will make credit expansion safer, more productive, and inclusive, while maintaining financial stability and customer confidence.
MSME-focused measures provide a strong push to the sector. The 10,000 crore SME Growth Fund and risk-capital support will strengthen their long-term bankability. The proposed 'Corporate Mitras' network is a smart step. Affordable compliance support can speed up MSME formalisation, improve financial discipline, and raise enterprise quality.
SHE-Marts for rural women-led enterprises support sustainable empowerment. These community-owned retail hubs can strengthen local supply chains, promote entrepreneurship, and build long-term social and financial resilience.
The digital infrastructure push is a welcome move. A tax holiday until 2047 for foreign cloud players using Indian data centres, along with a 15% safe harbour for related entities, strategically anchors India as a global digital infrastructure hub. It will boost investment and create high-skilled jobs in the country. Also, it will tangentially help the financial ecosystem to accelerate digitisation with cost-effective tech infrastructure.”
