<p>As February 1 draws near, all eyes are on Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and the Union Budget she will present in the Parliament for FY22. This year's budget gains significance due to the Covid-19 pandemic and its impact on the country. The FM has many expectations to weigh before her speech. </p>.<p>Some customary activities have developed around this financial exercise over the years as India’s 28 finance ministers presented the budget. Some of these are bound to be impacted due to Covid-19 and related protocol. </p>.<p><strong>Here are the most important Budget traditions:</strong></p>.<p>1. <strong>Halwa Ceremony</strong>: One of the most interesting traditions surrounding the Budget is this ceremony. Ten days before the Budget is presented, the Finance Minister and staff involved in the preparation of the budget mark the printing of the budget with this ceremony. The FM serves halwa, a type of sweet, to the officers and staff. This is also a way to laud the staff and their efforts in the preparation of the financial document.</p>.<p>Due to Covid-19, in a first, the government is not printing the budget documents or the Economic Survey. Instead, electronic documents will be provided to everyone. But that did not stop the government from conducting the halwa ceremony in the Finance Ministry. </p>.<p>This year, the FM launched a Union Budget Mobile App for easy access to the budget document on the occasion.</p>.<p>2. <strong>Quarantine</strong>: Following the halwa ceremony, all officials including the FM who were part of the Budget-making, go into quarantine in the basement of the North Block to avoid any leaks regarding the budget. They only emerge when the FM has to present the Budget on February 1.</p>.<p>3. <strong>Security check</strong>: Tight security measures are ensured in and outside the Parliament with high-tech surveillance, sweeps for electronic bugs, hidden cameras or scanners, to avoid leaks before the presentation.</p>.<p>4. <strong>The Budget briefcase</strong>: It is customary for the Finance Minister to carry her copy of the Budget in a briefcase. This can be traced back to 1860 when William Ewart Gladstone, the Chancellor of the Exchequer of Great Britain started the practice. Sitharaman switched the briefcase for a red coloured portfolio a few years ago.</p>
<p>As February 1 draws near, all eyes are on Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and the Union Budget she will present in the Parliament for FY22. This year's budget gains significance due to the Covid-19 pandemic and its impact on the country. The FM has many expectations to weigh before her speech. </p>.<p>Some customary activities have developed around this financial exercise over the years as India’s 28 finance ministers presented the budget. Some of these are bound to be impacted due to Covid-19 and related protocol. </p>.<p><strong>Here are the most important Budget traditions:</strong></p>.<p>1. <strong>Halwa Ceremony</strong>: One of the most interesting traditions surrounding the Budget is this ceremony. Ten days before the Budget is presented, the Finance Minister and staff involved in the preparation of the budget mark the printing of the budget with this ceremony. The FM serves halwa, a type of sweet, to the officers and staff. This is also a way to laud the staff and their efforts in the preparation of the financial document.</p>.<p>Due to Covid-19, in a first, the government is not printing the budget documents or the Economic Survey. Instead, electronic documents will be provided to everyone. But that did not stop the government from conducting the halwa ceremony in the Finance Ministry. </p>.<p>This year, the FM launched a Union Budget Mobile App for easy access to the budget document on the occasion.</p>.<p>2. <strong>Quarantine</strong>: Following the halwa ceremony, all officials including the FM who were part of the Budget-making, go into quarantine in the basement of the North Block to avoid any leaks regarding the budget. They only emerge when the FM has to present the Budget on February 1.</p>.<p>3. <strong>Security check</strong>: Tight security measures are ensured in and outside the Parliament with high-tech surveillance, sweeps for electronic bugs, hidden cameras or scanners, to avoid leaks before the presentation.</p>.<p>4. <strong>The Budget briefcase</strong>: It is customary for the Finance Minister to carry her copy of the Budget in a briefcase. This can be traced back to 1860 when William Ewart Gladstone, the Chancellor of the Exchequer of Great Britain started the practice. Sitharaman switched the briefcase for a red coloured portfolio a few years ago.</p>
