Budget 2021 | Tablet, Covid-19, Gabba in FM Sitharaman's 110-minute innings

The digital push, Covid and cricket, that have impacted Indians of late, made it to Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman's Budget speech too.

The digital thrust of the Union Budget was evident when Sitharaman, clad in a red and cream-hued saree with patterns, carried a tablet PC ensconced in a red cover with the national emblem displayed prominently.

The government has done away with the printing of the Budget documents from this year, making them available to lawmakers on the Member's Portal.

Sitharaman's 110-minute speech mentioned the word 'Covid-19' nine times, 'pandemic' on seven occasions, 'vaccine' five times and 'health' 34 times. She also increased the allocation for healthcare by 137% over the previous fiscal.

Also Read | FM Sitharaman pegs fiscal deficit for FY22 at 6.8%

Unlike on earlier occasions, Sitharaman stood in the second row of the Treasury benches as she read out the speech from a tablet PC placed on a short lectern.

India's victory over Australia in the Test series also found a mention in the speech as Sitharaman highlighted the "unsuppressed thirst to perform and succeed" of the country's youth.

The customary quote from Thiruvalluvar – a must for many finance ministers – also found a mention as she dealt with the Direct Taxes component in her speech.

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It was also the shortest speech by Sitharaman, who had delivered the longest speech last year. Her first Budget speech in July 2019 went on for around 137 minutes and in 2020, it went on for more than 160 minutes and was cut short after she felt unwell.

With seats demarcated to ensure adequate social distancing among members, some of the Union ministers, including Railway Minister Piyush Goyal, were sitting in Rajya Sabha during the Budget speech.