In a bid to boost urban infrastructure, the Centre Saturday hiked the allocation for the Union Housing and Urban Affairs Ministry by around 18 per cent, setting aside Rs 96,777 crore for it in the Union Budget 2025-26. In the budget presented in Parliament, the government also announced the setting up of an Urban Challenge Fund of Rs 1 lakh crore for "cities as growth hubs", "creative redevelopment of cities", and "water and sanitation". An allocation of Rs 10,000 crore has been proposed for it in FY 2025-26. The government has allocated Rs 96,777 crore to the HUA ministry for the next fiscal as against Rs 82,576 crore in Budget 2024-25. Presenting the Union Budget 2025-26, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said the PM Street Vendor's AtmaNirbhar Nidhi (PM SVANidhi) scheme will be revamped with enhanced loans from banks and UPI-linked credit cards with Rs 30,000 limit. In the Budget 2025-26, the government has set aside Rs 373 crore for the PM SVANidhi against the Rs 326 crore ..