Union Budget 2023-24: All you need to know about process involved in making of Budget

The Union Finance Ministry creates the yearly budget each year after consulting with a number of other ministries including the think tank Niti Aayog. Even the budget preparation process, which gets started months before it is presented to Parliament, goes through a number of stages like planning, implementation, and consultations. Continue reading to know about the process

All ministries, states, UTs, and autonomous entities receive a circular from the finance ministry requesting estimates for the upcoming fiscal year. This circular includes the necessary instructions and skeleton forms depending on the needs made by the various ministries. In addition to projections, the states, UTs, and union ministries provide specifics about their receipts and outlays from the preceding year.

To determine the overall budget deficit, the finance ministry analyses the estimates of revenue and spending. The Centre then works with the Chief Economic Advisor to determine how much money the government will need to borrow to cover the deficit.

The finance ministry makes a decision regarding the funding allotments to various departments for their upcoming expenses after taking into account all recommendations.

To learn about the recommendations and demands of different stakeholders, including state representatives, bankers, agriculturalists, economists, and trade unions, pre-Budget discussions are organised.

Following the pre-Budget discussions, the Finance Minister makes the final decision regarding demands and discusses the recommendations with the Prime Minister before the Budget is finalised.

The government holds a halwa ceremony every year to commemorate the conclusion of the Union Budget preparation process. Beginning with the Halwa ceremony, budget paperwork will be printed. The entire personnel of the finance ministry is given "Halwa."