Sitharaman replaces Swadeshi 'bahi khata' with tablet
For the presentation of Budget 2021, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has ditched the Swadeshi 'bahi khata' and has switched to a 'Made In India' tablet. Pictures showed the finance minister carrying a tablet draped in a red coloured cover with a golden coloured national emblem embossed on it. Dressed in a red and cream colour saree, accompanied by MoS Finance Anurag Thakur and other officials from her ministry, Sitharaman is scheduled to meet President Ram Nath Kovind before presenting the budget at 11 am today.
In 2019, Sitharaman had ditched the long-standing tradition of carrying budget documents in a leather briefcase and had gone swadeshi with a 'bahi-khata'. She had said that the Modi government is not a "suitcase-carrying government", in an apparent jibe at the past dispensations.
This year, the Union Budget will be delivered in paperless form for the first time. The budget 2021 assumes greater significance as it comes amid the COVID pandemic which has caused economic disruption.
Finance Minister had launched the "Union Budget Mobile App" for hassle-free access of Budget documents by Members of Parliament (MPs) and the general public using the simplest form of digital convenience, according to the Finance Ministry.
The App facilitates complete access to 14 Union Budget documents, including the Annual Financial Statement (commonly known as Budget), Demand for Grants (DG), and Finance Bill as prescribed by the Constitution.
Sitharaman dons red saree for 2021-22 budget presentation
For her third budget presentation, Sitharaman kept her look simple, donning a crisp red-coloured saree with off-white detailing and gold border. She completed her look with a gold chain and bangles and tiny earrings. The red colour, which is considered auspicious, represents the strongest emotions including love, energy, attention, and power.
Sitharaman's sartorial choices have made headlines on many occasions - from donning beautiful handloom sarees to sporting silk sarees. For the unversed, she likes wearing subtle yet classy handloom and silk sarees to work. It is safe to say that it is her wardrobe arithmetic that gives her appearance a distinct stamp.
During her maiden budget presentation in 2019, Sitharaman grabbed many eyeballs when she broke away from long-standing traditions of colonial-era, ditching the briefcase and opting for traditional bahi khata, which is a kind of a ledger wrapped in a red coloured cloth.
Budget and Tradition of Budget Briefcases
The word 'Budget' originated from the french word Bougette, which means leather briefcase. The tradition of carrying the Budget briefcase was a copy of the 'Gladstone box' that is used in the British budget.
In 1860, the then British budget chief William E Gladstone used a red suitcase with Queen's monogram embossed in gold to carry his documents, which came to be known as 'Gladstone Box'.
In 1947, India's first Finance Minister RK Shanmukham Chetty carried a leather portfolio to present the first Budget.
Before Sitharaman, a long-standing tradition in connection with the budget presentation was broken during the Atal Bihari Vajpayee government with the then Finance Minister Yashwant Sinha presenting the budget at 11 am rather than at the traditional time of 5 pm.
Since then all governments have been presenting the budget at 11 am.
