Budget 2026: Final-stage preparations begin with 'Halwa Ceremony'

New Delhi, Jan 27, 2026

Synopsis
The Halwa ceremony has concluded, signaling the final preparations for the Union Budget 2026-27. Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman attended the event at the Budget Press. Officials involved in the budget preparation have now entered a lock-in period. The Union Budget 2026-27 will be presented on February 1, 2026.

The Halwa ceremony, marking the final stage of the Budget preparation process for Union Budget 2026-27, was held today in the Budget Press at North Block, in the presence of Union Minister for Finance and Corporate Affairs Nirmala Sitharaman.

The 'Halwa ceremony' precedes the 'lock-in' of the officials involved in the preparation of the Union Budget. The Union Budget 2026-27 will be presented on February 1, 2026.

At the Halwa Ceremony, the Union Finance Minister was accompanied by the Secretaries of all the Departments under the Ministry of Finance and other senior officers involved in Budget preparation.

Union Minister of State for Finance Pankaj Chaudhary was also present.

As part of the ceremony, Sitharaman also took a tour of the Budget Press and reviewed the preparations, besides extending her best wishes to the entire budget team.

All Union Budget documents, including the Annual Financial Statement (commonly known as Budget), Demand for Grants (DG), Finance Bill will also be available on the "Union Budget Mobile App" for hassle-free access of Budget documents by Members of Parliament (MPs) and the general public in a digital accessible mode, a Finance Ministry release said.

The Budget documents will be available on the Mobile App and the website after the completion of the Budget Speech by the Union Finance Minister in Parliament, it added.

[The Economic Times]