‘Halwa Ceremony’ Before Budget Dropped Over Covid Concern

The budget to be paperless like the last time on February 1

On Saturday, 29 January 2022, the traditional "Halwa ceremony" ahead of the Union budget was dropped for the first time this year in view of the pandemic situation in Delhi, the Union government said.

The budget will be paperless like the last time and will be presented by Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on February 1.

In a statement today, the government said that, "To mark the final stage of the Union Budget making process, sweets were distributed to the core staff due to undergo "lock-in" at their workplaces, instead of a customary Halwa ceremony every year in view of the prevailing pandemic situation."

The "halwa ceremony" was organized by the Finance Ministry at its headquarters in the North Block basement every year - marking the beginning of the "lock in" period for officials working on budget.

The finance minister stirs the dessert in a traditional kadhai and serves it to her colleagues. It is later distributed to everyone who works on the budget, as a mark of recognition.

To ensure that the budget details are not leaked, there is a "lock-in" period for the officials involved, which starts from today.

The statement said, "Budget Press, situated inside North Block, houses all officials in the period leading up to the presentation of the Union Budget. These officers and staff will come in contact with their near and dear ones only after the Budget is presented by the Union Finance Minister in the Parliament."

While the Covid numbers in Delhi are slightly decreasing, Earlier the Omicron variant of the virus was declared the dominant strain in Delhi.

The budget will now also be allowed in a mobile app, which will provide complete access to 14 Union Budget documents. This will include the Budget Speech, Annual Financial Statement, Demand for Grants, Finance Bill etc. as detailed by the Constitution.

The bilingual (English & Hindi) mobile app is available on both Android and iOS platforms, the government said.