Finance Minister... Why does she distribute halwa every time before the budget? What is the meaning of this ceremony?
India Budget 2024: On February 1, the Finance Minister (FM Nirmala Sitharaman) will present the country's budget in the Parliament. This will be the last budget of the second term of Modi Government. But do you know why the Finance Minister makes halwa in a big pan every time before the budget?
HR Mandi Bhav: Budget 2024: Only a few days are left for the country's budget to arrive. On February 1, the Finance Minister (FM Nirmala Sitharaman) will present the country's budget in the Parliament.
This will be the last budget of the second term of Modi Government. This time the budget will be vote on account. But do you know why the Finance Minister makes halwa in a big pan every time before the budget? What is the reason behind this and since when has the tradition of making this halwa been going on?
The tradition of Halwa Ceremony is not of today but it has been going on since before independence. Halwa ceremony is done after all the preparations for presenting the budget are completed. All the officers and employees of the Finance Ministry are present in this Halwa Ceremony.
There will be no big announcements
Everyone has high expectations before the last budget of PM Modi's second term, but Finance Minister Sitharaman has already made it clear that no major announcements will be made in the interim budget this time.
Where is Halwa Ceremony celebrated?
This tradition of Halwa Ceremony has been going on for decades. This tradition is celebrated in the Budget Press in the basement below North Block. The printing of the budget is started only after the pudding is made. From the day the halwa is made, the employees and officers who print the budget remain there.
Employees remain locked in North Block for 10 days
The Finance Minister prepares halwa in a big pan in the North Block of the Secretariat. After this the halwa is distributed among all the people.
After the Halwa ceremony, more than 100 employees of the Finance Ministry remain locked in the basement of North Block for about 10 days. They are not allowed to go out from there. All those employees can come out from there only after the budget speech of the Finance Minister. This is done so that no information related to the budget is leaked first.
Sweet food is considered auspicious
As we all know, in India it is considered good to eat sweets before doing any auspicious work. For this reason, this Halwa ceremony is celebrated before presenting the country's budget.