Jul 18, 2024
By: Kunal Kambli
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Union Budget 2024 is set to be presented in the Parliament on July 23. More than just a financial statement, the budget is a comprehensive reflection of a nation's economic priorities, policies and plans for the future.
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To build up to this annual event, here are ten interesting facts about the Union Budget.
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India's first budget was presented on April 7, 1860, by James Wilson—a Scottish economist associated with the East India Company.
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Post independence, the first budget was presented on November 26, 1947. This was done by R K Shanmukham Chetty, India's first Finance Minister.
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Current Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman holds the record for delivering the longest budget speech in India's history. She spoke for two hours and forty two minutes during the 2020 presentation.
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In terms of words, the record for longest budget speech is held by Manmohan Singh. He used 18,604 words in his 1991 speech.
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Until 1999, the budget was presented at 5pm in the Parliament. The timing was changed to 11am in 1999 by then Finance Minister Yashwant Sinha.
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Due to the COVID-19 epidemic, the budget for 2021-22 was made entirely digital—a first for independent India.
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Current FM Nirmala Sitharaman is only the second woman to present the Indian budget, after Indira Gandhi.
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'Halwa ceremony' takes place a week before the budget, where the finance minister distributes 'Halwa' among ministry officials and staff.
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In 2019, Nirmala Sitharaman broke over a century-old tradition. Instead of carrying the traditional leather briefcase, she brought the budget documents wrapped in a red silk cloth, which she referred to as a "bahi-khata".
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Since 1947, there have been a total of 73 annual budgets, 14 interim budgets and four special budgets.
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