No 'halwa' ceremony for 2022 paperless Budget

No 'halwa' ceremony for 2022 paperless Budget

The Union Budget would be available in English and Hindi on the mobile app

Amid the third wave of the Covid-19 pandemic followed by the Omicron variant, the Union Budget 2022-23 would be presented by the Union Finance & Corporate Affairs Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on 1 February 2022, in a paperless form.

To mark the final stage of the Budget-making process, sweets were provided to the core staff, which is set to undergo 'lock-in' at their workplaces. To observe health safety protocols prevailing due to the pandemic situation, the usual 'halwa' ceremony has been disallowed.

To maintain the secrecy of the Budget, the officers and staff involved in preparing it are not allowed to go out. The Budget Press, situated inside the North Block building, houses all officials in the period leading up to the presentation of the Budget. They come in contact with others only after the Finance Minister in the Parliament presents the Budget.

In a historic move, the Union Budget of 2021-22 was delivered in paperless form for the first time. For hassle-free access of the Budget documents by Members of Parliament (MPs) and the general public, a 'Union Budget Mobile App' was also launched.

This year too, the Budget 2022-23 would be available on the mobile app after the process of presentation is completed in the Parliament. The bilingual (English & Hindi) mobile app would be available on both Android and iOS platforms.

The app allows complete access to 14 Union Budget documents, including the Budget Speech, Annual Financial Statement (commonly known as Budget), Demand for Grants (DG) and Finance Bill, as prescribed by the Constitution of India.

The app can also be downloaded from the Union Budget web portal www.indiabudget.gov.in. The documents would be available for download by the general public on www.indiabudget.gov.in.