The crucial budget session of the Parliament will begin today at 11 am with the speech of President Ram Nath Kovind. The Narendra Modi government will present its fifth and final full-fledged budget of its present term in office on February 1.
President Ram Nath Kovind's address to a joint sitting of the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha will mark the beginning of the Budget Session 2018. The Economic Survey of India will also be tabled later in the day.
The Economic Survey is the ministry’s view on the annual economic development of the country.
A flagship annual document of the Ministry of Finance, Government of India, Economic Survey reviews the developments in the Indian economy over the previous 12 months, summarises the performance on major development programs, and highlights the policy initiatives of the government and the prospects of the economy in the short to medium term.
This document is presented to both houses of Parliament during the Budget Session.
This year the Modi government will present the economic survey on January 29.
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Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley will present the Budget 2018 on February 1, enlisting government’s income and expenditure presenting an elaborate account before the Parliament.
Due to the complete overhaul of the indirect tax regime post the implementation of the Goods and Services Tax (GST) last year, the February 1 budget is said to be different from the previous four such exercises.
Finance Minister's budget this year will also be crucial politically as big states like Karnataka, Rajasthan Madhya Pradesh are going to polls soon.
Date and time of Union Budget 2018
The Union Budget 2018 will be presented by Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on February 1.
In 2017, the practice of presenting the budget on last working day of February, was done away with, giving way for it be tabled on the first day of the month.
Scrapping the colonial-era tradition, Jaitley had for the first time presented the annual accounts on February 1, last year. This was done to give more time to departments to spend the money allocated to them.
It is expected that the finance minister will ‘rise to present’ budget 2018 at noon.
Budget session dates
The first phase of the Budget session will be from January 29 to February 9. After a recess, Parliament will meet again from March 5 to April 6.
There will be a recess between the session so that the department-related standing committees can clear the budgetary proposals related to their respective ministries.
Bills in Budget session 2018
The Budget session is likely to see important bills, including one for the commission for Backward Classes, and another one of Triple Talaq being taken up.
While The Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Bill was stuck in Rajya Sabha after getting passed in the Lower House, the Constitution (123rd Amendment) Bill, 2017, which proposes constitutional status for the OBC commission, could not be passed in the Lok Sabha.
The government had tabled the bill in Lok Sabha with an amendment alternative to the amendment made by the Rajya Sabha.
