Budget Preparations: FM To Start Pre-Budget Consultation - Check Date, Agenda, Other Details

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will commence customary pre- Budget consultations with various stakeholders starting Friday. As part of this exercise, she is scheduled to meet eminent economists on December 6 to gather insights for the upcoming Union Budget. This follows the release of a seven-quarter low GDP growth figure of 5.4 per cent for the second quarter of the current fiscal year.  

Subsequent consultations with farmer associations, agriculture economists, and MSME sector stakeholders are planned for December 7, according to sources. The pre-budget discussions, which include representatives from trade unions, the financial sector, and service industries, will conclude on December 30 with inputs from Indian industry leaders and social sector players, especially in education and health.  

These meetings will be chaired by the finance minister and attended by key officials, including Minister of State for Finance Pankaj Chaudhary, Finance Secretary Tuhin Kanta Pandey, Economic Affairs Secretary Ajay Seth, Revenue Secretary Sanjay Malhotra, and Financial Services Secretary M Nagaraju.  

Key Highlights of Budget 2025-26 Preparations  

The Union Budget 2025-26, likely to be tabled in Parliament on February 1, will mark Nirmala Sitharaman's eighth consecutive Budget presentation and the second full Budget of the Modi 3.0 government. It is expected to provide policy direction to achieve the government’s vision of a developed India by 2047 under the "Viksit Bharat" framework.  

For the current fiscal year, the government had projected nominal GDP growth of 10.5 per cent and set the fiscal deficit target at 4.9 per cent of GDP. Since 2017, the Budget has been presented on February 1, following a decision by the Modi government to advance the date from the colonial-era practice of presenting it at the end of February. This change allows ministries to receive their allocations from the start of the financial year in April, providing more time for government departments to implement spending plans and for businesses to adjust to policy changes.