FM Nirmala Sitharaman Set to Extend Record with 9th Consecutive Budget Presentation
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will present her ninth consecutive Budget on February 1, 2026, extending her record as the only Indian Finance Minister to achieve this streak. She holds multiple Budget records including the longest speech duration of 2 hours and 42 minutes in 2020, introducing the first paperless Budget presentation using a tablet, and replacing the colonial Budget briefcase tradition with the Indian 'Budget Bahi Khata' in 2019. With this upcoming presentation, she will be one Budget short of Morarji Desai's overall record of 10 Budget presentations.
*this image is generated using AI for illustrative purposes only.
Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman is set to make history once again as she prepares to present her ninth consecutive Budget on February 1, 2026. This presentation will not only extend her existing record but also mark the first time a Budget will be presented on a Sunday. The Budget presentation is scheduled for 11 am at Parliament, following the traditional format where it will subsequently be deliberated in both Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha sessions.
Record-Breaking Consecutive Presentations
Sitharaman holds the unprecedented record of presenting the most consecutive Budgets in India's history. Since taking charge of the Modi government's finance portfolio in 2019, she has delivered eight consecutive Budget presentations from 2019 to 2025. With the upcoming Budget 2026, she will extend this streak to nine consecutive presentations, a feat unmatched by any previous Finance Minister.
| Achievement | Details |
|---|---|
| Consecutive Budgets | 8 (2019-2025), extending to 9 in 2026 |
| Portfolio Duration | Since 2019 |
| Previous Record Holder | None (first to achieve this streak) |
Historic Speech Duration Records
The Finance Minister also holds the record for delivering the longest Budget speech in India's parliamentary history. In 2020, Sitharaman spoke for 2 hours and 42 minutes, surpassing her own previous record of 2 hours and 17 minutes set in 2019. During the 2020 presentation, she experienced health issues midway through her speech, requiring Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla to read the final two pages on her behalf.
| Speech Records | Duration |
|---|---|
| Longest Speech (2020) | 2 hours 42 minutes |
| Previous Record (2019) | 2 hours 17 minutes |
The 2020 Budget speech was particularly significant as Sitharaman introduced major reforms including a new income tax regime and announced the historic LIC IPO during this extended presentation.
Digital Innovation in Budget Presentation
Sitharaman pioneered the transition to digital Budget presentations in 2020, becoming the first Finance Minister to deliver a completely paperless Budget. She replaced traditional paper documents with a tablet, marking a significant shift toward modern presentation methods. This digital approach represented a departure from decades of paper-based Budget presentations in the Indian Parliament.
Cultural Transformation with 'Budget Bahi Khata'
In 2019, during her first Budget presentation, Sitharaman introduced another significant change by discontinuing the colonial-era tradition of carrying the Budget briefcase. She replaced it with a red cloth-wrapped pouch called the 'Budget Bahi Khata', featuring the national emblem. This change symbolized a return to Indian heritage in financial book-keeping practices and represented a cultural shift in Budget presentation traditions.
| Traditional vs. Modern Approach | | ---: | :--- | | Colonial Era | Budget briefcase | | Indian Tradition | Red 'Bahi Khata' pouch with national emblem | | Digital Era | Tablet-based presentation (2020) |
Approaching Historical Milestone
With Budget 2026, Sitharaman will move closer to matching the overall record held by former Finance Minister Morarji Desai, who presented 10 Budgets during his tenure, though not consecutively. Sitharaman's ninth presentation will leave her just one Budget short of Desai's total count, while maintaining her unique record of consecutive presentations.
The upcoming Budget 2026 continues Sitharaman's remarkable tenure as Finance Minister, combining record-breaking achievements with innovative approaches to traditional parliamentary procedures.
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