In a first, the Budget for 2017-18 will be presented on February 1 instead of the usual February 28.However, what still remains etched in tradition is the ritual of making Halwa – a traditional sweet, to kickstart the whole process of printing the budget documents.
While the ritual of making Halwa is dutifully followed every year to mark the auspicious beginning of the Budget process, nobody knows for sure when or how it all started. Nevertheless not just the Halwa ceremony, but the tradition of about 100 employees of the Finance Ministrystaying locked down till the process of publishing of budget documents is over, is also followed to the hilt, till date.
The first Union Budget of Independent India was presented by R K Shanmukham Chetty on November 26, 1947.
On Thursday evening, Halwa was prepared to mark the beginning of the printing of Budget documents Post the ceremony, more than 100 Finance Ministry officials and support staff, who are directly associated with the Budget making and printing process, will stay in Budget printing press till Finance Minister Arun Jaitley concludes his speech in Parliament.
This year will also mark first ever merged budget-general budget as well as Railways budget, unlike the past practice.
The Halwa ceremony followed by "Lock in Period"
The Halwa ceremony, as part of a ritual, has continued for long. Halwa is prepared in a big kadhai (large wok) in the basement of North Block which houses the ministry and is served to the entire staff.
Meanwhile, the “locked-in” employees are not even allowed to contact their near and dear ones through phone or any other form of communication. Few very senior officials are permitted to go home, while rest remain locked in the North Block till the presentation of Budget on February 1. Only in emergency, a family member can relay message through security in-charge to the concerned official locked inside. Special arrangements for food and lodging are made for the officials, who remain inside the Budget press. A special team of doctors and paramedical staff are stationed inside. Unlike all government publications that are printed at the government press, the Budget documents are printed in a special printing press situated in the basement of North Block, under a tight security cover.