Nirmala Sitharaman to break Morarji Desai’s record for most budget presentations
New Delhi: Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman is set to make history on Tuesday by presenting her seventh Union Budget in Parliament, surpassing former Finance Minister Morarji Desai’s record of six. Desai served as Finance Minister under Prime Ministers Jawaharlal Nehru and Indira Gandhi before becoming Prime Minister in 1977.
The first budget of independent India was presented by Finance Minister RK Shanmugam Chetty on November 26, 1947, amounting to ₹197.1 crore. This has grown significantly, with the budget for the last financial year reaching ₹47.65 lakh crore.
Historically, the budget presentation time was 5 PM until Finance Minister Yashwant Sinha moved it to 11 AM in 1999, a practice that continues today.
Data from the Lok Sabha Secretariat reveals that there have been instances when the Prime Minister, rather than the Finance Minister, presented the general budget. For instance, Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru presented the budget for the financial year 1958-59 while temporarily handling the finance portfolio. Similarly, Indira Gandhi presented the Budget for FY1969-70 after Morarji Desai’s resignation.
In 2019, due to the ill health of then Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, the budget was presented by his colleague, Minister Piyush Goyal.
It is notable that the Railways ministry, which previously had a separate budget, merged with the general budget in 2017.
After presenting the Budget in the Lok Sabha, the Finance Minister also tables the budget papers in the Rajya Sabha. However, the Upper House does not have jurisdiction to approve or disapprove the Budget.
The Budget discussions include debates on ministry-specific allocations or Demands for Grants. These demands are then collectively passed through a process known as Guillotine.
While the Rajya Sabha can debate the budget, it lacks the power to alter or reject it. Following the debate, the Rajya Sabha refers the budget back to the Lok Sabha.
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Mandaviya opens ESIC hospital in Doddaballapur, lays foundation for facility in Ballari
Bengaluru (PTI): Union Minister Mansukh Mandaviya on Sunday inaugurated the newly constructed 100-bedded ESIC Hospital at Doddaballapur near here.
He also laid the foundation stone for a 100-bedded ESIC Hospital at Ballari, remotely from Doddaballapur.
Union Minister of State for Labour and Employment Shobha Karandlaje, Chikkaballapura MP K. Sudhakar, and Doddaballapur MP Dheeraj Muniraju were among those present.
These healthcare facilities mark a significant milestone in strengthening healthcare delivery under the Employees’ State Insurance (ESI) Scheme in the region, officials said at the event.
As a special gesture, the union minister of labour and employment also honoured construction workers who contributed to the development of the hospital and disbursed cash benefits to ESI beneficiaries during the event.
The Doddaballapur facility will serve over 1,42,037 insured workers and their families, benefiting approximately 5.5 lakh beneficiaries across Bengaluru Rural, Chikkaballapur, Tumakuru, and Kolar districts, according to a release.
The Ballari facility, upon completion, will cater to the medical needs of around 64,000 workers and their families, benefiting over 2 lakh beneficiaries in the Ballari division, it said.
The ESIC Hospital at Doddaballapur in Bengaluru Rural is a 100-bedded multi-speciality secondary care facility built over 5 acres at Rs 101.14 crore.
It has 32 staff quarters and offers key services such as general medicine, surgery, obstetrics and gynaecology, paediatrics, orthopaedics, emergency care, and comprehensive diagnostic facilities, including radiology, laboratory, and blood bank.
The proposed ESIC Hospital at Ballari will be developed on 5.21 acres at an estimated cost of Rs 150 crore and will provide modern healthcare services to insured persons and their families under the ESI Scheme.
