Arun Jaitley, Finance Minister is all set to deliver his second Union Budget on 29th February. The preparation of Budget will begin 10-15 days prior to the announcement of Budget in Parliament. These preparations include printing the necessary documents.
This printing of documents and other necessary stuff will begin with “Halwa Ceremony” which is considered as a ritual and it is one of the old traditions followed by the Government of India. In this ceremony, Halwa is prepared in a large frying pot and is served to the entire Finance Ministry in the North Block office.
FM Shri Arun Jaitley at Halwa ceremony to mark commencement of Budget printing process for General Budget 2016-17. pic.twitter.com/mQ51dLyLvA
— Ministry of Finance (@FinMinIndia) February 19, 2016
Arun Jaitley, his deputy Jayant Sinha, Revenue Secretary Hashmukh Adhia, Finance Secretary Ratan Watal and other key officers along with the staff were present at the Halwa Ceremony this year. This ceremony took place on February 19th, 2016. This commences the Printing of the General Budget 2016-17.
Enjoyed the Halwa ceremony today, marking the beginning of Budget printing process. pic.twitter.com/noVxVXcU0j
— Jayant Sinha (Modi Ka Parivar) (@jayantsinha) February 19, 2016
After the Halwa ceremony, all the staff of the Finance Ministry need to remain isolated and will stay in the North Block office till the Budget is presented in the Parliament. Apart from higher officials, all the other staff members will remain in the North block and they are cut off from their families in this period. No sort of communication like phone, messaging or e-mail is allowed during the lock-in period.
Halwa Ceremony Preparation Video:
Click Here to directly watch on YouTube.
The lock-in period is to ensure the secrecy of the Budget preparation. The significance of Halwa Ceremony is – It is considered as an Indian tradition to eat something sweet before starting an important work.
Have you ever heard about this Ceremony? Do share your views in the comments section below.