Daijiworld Media Network - New Delhi
New Delhi, Jan 7: The Cabinet Committee on Parliamentary Affairs (CCPA) on Wednesday recommended that the Union Budget for 2026–27 be presented on February 1, even though the date falls on a Sunday, according to media reports.
If cleared, the move would mark one of the few recent occasions when the Budget is tabled on a weekend. The government is keen to adhere to the February 1 schedule to ensure that budgetary proposals come into effect from the very start of the new financial year.
As per the proposed calendar, the Budget Session of Parliament will commence on January 28 with the President’s address to a joint sitting of the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha. The Economic Survey, which provides an overview of the country’s economic performance and outlook, is expected to be presented on January 29.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman is set to present her ninth consecutive Union Budget, which will also be the 88th Budget since Independence. Since 2017, Union Budgets have been presented at 11 am on February 1, after the practice was advanced from the earlier February 28 timeline. The change was introduced during the tenure of former finance minister Arun Jaitley to allow quicker rollout of policy measures and government spending from April 1.
While uncommon, weekend Budget presentations are not unprecedented. Sitharaman presented the Union Budget 2025 on a Saturday, and Arun Jaitley had also delivered the Budgets of 2015 and 2016 on February 28, both Saturdays.
With the upcoming Budget, Sitharaman is poised to create history as the first finance minister to present nine consecutive Union Budgets. She will move closer to the record set by former Prime Minister Morarji Desai, who presented 10 Budgets across two separate terms. In comparison, P. Chidambaram delivered nine Budgets, while Pranab Mukherjee presented eight during their tenures.
Sitharaman became India’s first full-time woman finance minister in 2019 after Prime Minister Narendra Modi began his second term and has continued to hold the finance portfolio following the government’s return to power for a third consecutive term in 2024.