<h1>Sensex and Nifty Rise Ahead of Union Budget; ITC Hotels and IndusInd Bank Lead Gains, Titan Lags</h1> Benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty opened higher ahead of the Union Budget presentation, with Sensex rising 136.44 points to 77,637.01 and Nifty increasing by 20.2 points to 23,528.60. Major gainers included ITC Hotels and IndusInd Bank, while Titan and Kotak Mahindra Bank were among the laggards. Market expectations focus on potential personal income tax cuts to boost consumption, though fiscal constraints limit significant relief. The pre-Budget Economic Survey projects India's economy to grow by 6.3-6.8%, indicating a need for deregulation and reforms to achieve higher growth rates. Asian markets were closed, and US markets ended lower.