Budget Trivia

[NEHA BHOLA]

R K Shanmukham Shetty presented independent India's first budget.


The budget papers are printed in the Finance Ministry's press. A week before the budget is presented, the employees of the press stay in the ministry and have no means of communicating with the outside world.


The 1991-92 final and interim Budgets were presented by finance ministers of two different political parties. While Yashwant Sinha presented the interim budget, the final budget was presented by Manmohan Singh.


The 1965-66 budget contained the first disclosure scheme for black money.


Jawahar Lal Nehru was the first prime minister to present the budget when he held the finance portfolio in 1958-59.


Morarji Desai holds the unique distinction of presenting the budget - not once but twice - on his birthday. In 1964 and 1968 - both leap years - Desai presented the budget on February 29, his birthday.


R Venkataraman was the only finance minister who later became the President of India.

Three interim budgets were presented in the 1990s. While Yashwant Sinha presented the interim Budgets for 1991-92 and 1998-99, Manmohan Singh presented the 1996-97 interim Budget.


The precedent for the convention of the budget speech beginning at 5:00 pm was set by Sir Basil Blackett in 1924. According to him, this was done to give some relief to officials who worked all night to present a financial statement. He also felt that this would give traders an opportunity to study the announcements overnight instead of in the middle of a busy day.

P Chidambaram rewrote India's Exim Policy in one non-stop eight-hour sitting in July 1991, when he became the commerce minister.