New Delhi: The traditional ‘Halwa’ ceremony, which marked the beginning of printing Budget The documents, will not be conducted this year in view of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, the Finance Ministry said on Thursday.
In an official release, the government said that instead of holding the ceremony, sweets were provided to the core staff members, who will now remain in “lock-in” at their workplaces.
These officers and employees will come in contact with their loved ones only after the budget is presented in the Parliament.
It was an annual tradition for the government to hold celebrations a few days before the presentation of the budget.
What is ‘Halwa’ ceremony
As part of the budget-making ritual, ‘halwa’ is prepared in a large ‘kadhai’ (large frying pot) and served to the entire staff in the Ministry of Finance.
The significance of the sweet is that after it is served, a large number of officers and support staff – those directly involved with the budget-making and printing process – are required to remain in the ministry.
all who attended the ceremony
The ceremony is attended by the finance minister, the secretary in the ministry, budget department officials and two tax wing and staff members, who remain locked inside the budget press until the speech is completed. They don’t even have access to their family members.
This year the budget is going to be green again
In a historic move, Union Budget 2021-22 was distributed in paperless form for the first time.
Finance Minister last year Nirmala Sitharaman Read his budget speech from handheld tablet.
This year also the budget will be presented in paperless format. She reached Parliament with a gadget in a red colored ‘Bahi-Khata’ cloth.
The Finance Minister had also launched the ‘Union Budget App’ or hassle free access of budget documents by Members of Parliament (MPs) and general public.
This year also it will be available on the mobile app after the completion of the budget presentation process.
The app allows full access to 14 Union Budget documents including Budget Speech, Annual Financial Statement (commonly known as Budget), Demands for Grants (DG), Finance Bills etc as prescribed by the Constitution. The mobile app is bilingual (English and Hindi) and is available on both Android and iOS platforms.
In an official release, the government said that instead of holding the ceremony, sweets were provided to the core staff members, who will now remain in “lock-in” at their workplaces.
These officers and employees will come in contact with their loved ones only after the budget is presented in the Parliament.
It was an annual tradition for the government to hold celebrations a few days before the presentation of the budget.
What is ‘Halwa’ ceremony
As part of the budget-making ritual, ‘halwa’ is prepared in a large ‘kadhai’ (large frying pot) and served to the entire staff in the Ministry of Finance.
The significance of the sweet is that after it is served, a large number of officers and support staff – those directly involved with the budget-making and printing process – are required to remain in the ministry.
all who attended the ceremony
The ceremony is attended by the finance minister, the secretary in the ministry, budget department officials and two tax wing and staff members, who remain locked inside the budget press until the speech is completed. They don’t even have access to their family members.
This year the budget is going to be green again
In a historic move, Union Budget 2021-22 was distributed in paperless form for the first time.
Finance Minister last year Nirmala Sitharaman Read his budget speech from handheld tablet.
This year also the budget will be presented in paperless format. She reached Parliament with a gadget in a red colored ‘Bahi-Khata’ cloth.
The Finance Minister had also launched the ‘Union Budget App’ or hassle free access of budget documents by Members of Parliament (MPs) and general public.
This year also it will be available on the mobile app after the completion of the budget presentation process.
The app allows full access to 14 Union Budget documents including Budget Speech, Annual Financial Statement (commonly known as Budget), Demands for Grants (DG), Finance Bills etc as prescribed by the Constitution. The mobile app is bilingual (English and Hindi) and is available on both Android and iOS platforms.
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