Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Tuesday participated in a traditional 'halwa' ceremony, marking the final stage for preparation of Union Budget 2024-25 to be unveiled on July 23 in Lok Sabha.
The ceremony is a ritual in which traditional dessert 'halwa' is prepared and served to officials and staff members of the finance ministry who are involved in the preparation of the budget.
It is organised in the basement of North Block, which houses the ministry in the national capital and is attended by the finance minister and other high-ranking officials.
Halwa, a beloved Indian dessert, holds deep cultural significance and is a staple in various celebrations and ceremonies. It is an integral part of many Indian festivals such as Diwali, Eid, and Holi. In temples and during religious ceremonies, halwa is often offered to deities and distributed as prasad (blessed food) to devotees. Halwa is prepared during significant life events such as weddings, births, and housewarming ceremonies.
Halwa ceremony before budget
It is a kind of a 'send-off' for finance ministry officials and staff involved in the preparation of the Union government's annual financial statement. They enter what is called a 'lock-in' period, during which they stay in the basement of North Block, cut off from the world outside with a view to maintaining the secrecy around the final budget document. They will emerge only after the finance minister completes her Budget speech in the Lok Sabha. It is considered a gesture of appreciation for those who have worked on the Budget.
While the Narendra Modi government has done away with several traditional aspects of the Budget since coming to power in 2014, such as merging the Rail Budget with the main Budget, bringing forward the date of presentation to February 1 instead of the last date of that month, and moving to a digital format – the 'halwa' ceremony as a tradition has survived.
(With PTI inputs)