A big secret: How does the finance ministry keep the budget ‘strictly confidential’?

On Tuesday (July 23) at 11 am, Nirmala Sitharaman will present the Union Budget 2024. This is the Narendra Modi government’s first budget since it came to power for the third term in June.

The finance minister will take centre stage as she will deliver a speech, giving the Parliament and the whole nation an insight into the health of the country’s finances.

With this budget, Sitharaman is all set to make history. She becomes the first FM to present seven consecutive budgets, surpassing Morarji Desai’s record of six.

But before the presentation comes the preparation. The budget is kept strictly confidential. But why? The answer lies in the past. Years ago, the budget was leaked.

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When and how was the budget leaked?

The first budget (1947-1948) for independent India was announced by the Union Finance Minister Sir RK Shanmukham Chetty , who was a pro-British Justice Party leader.

Ahead of the budget, UK Chancellor of the Exchequer Hugh Dalton casually mentioned to a journalist some tax changes proposed by India. The scribe published the details before the budget speech in Parliament.

After the controversy, Dalton had to step down.

However, this was not an isolated incident. Years later, in 1950, a portion of the budget was leaked when the printing would take place at Rashtrapati Bhawan. This was when John Mathai was the finance minister.

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After the leak, the printing of the budget was shifted from Rashtrapati Bhawan to Minto Road in New Delhi.

Over the years, secrecy has become a hallmark of the Union Budget.

How is the budget kept a secret?

There is a lot that goes into ensuring that the budget remains confidential, especially in the age of the internet. But in more than seven decades now, there has been no leak.

From 1951 until 1980, the budget was printed at a press on Minto Road. Then a government press was set up in the basement of the North Block, the seat of the finance ministry in the old Parliament building.

Weeks before the announcement of the budget, the finance ministry office goes into a quarantine. It is out of bounds for visitors and media until the presentation.

The entry and exit points of the ministry are heavily guarded during this period. Even those who are involved in the making of the budget are under scrutiny – they are closely watched by the Intelligence Bureau with the help of the Delhi Police.

An intelligence team, which is headed by the joint secretary, monitors the movement of officials involved in the Budget-making process. Their phone calls are also tracked.

At least 100 officials are at work in the finance ministry for at least 10 days. During this time they have no contact with the outside world not even their families. In case of an emergency, the families of quarantined officials can leave a message on a number given to them. However, they cannot speak with them directly.

Only the finance minister can visit the officials. The Intelligence Bureau chief reportedly makes surprise visits to the printing press area.

The final preparations start with a halwa ceremony in the presence of the finance minister. After the dessert is distributed, the officials in charge of the printing get to work.

Other than finance ministry employees, the others quarantined include legal experts from the law ministry, Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) officials, and the Central Board of Excise and Customs (CBEC) officials. Press Information Bureau officials reportedly join them a few days later to publish press releases. Printing technicians and stenographers are also involved.

The computers of stenos are delinked from the National Informatics Centre (NIC) server to avoid cyber theft. A powerful mobile phone jammer is installed inside the finance ministry to block calls and prevent leakage of information, according to a report by Hindustan Times.

A team of doctors is deployed inside the finance ministry to handle any medical emergencies during this crucial 10-day period.

There are hundreds of documents in the finance ministry of which two are the most important.

First comes the Blue Sheet, a blue piece of paper, which contains important numbers around which the Budget document is prepared. This paper is updated as and when new data comes in and forms the backbone of the Budget process, according to a report in Business Today.

Even the finance minister does not have access to this Blue Sheet. It is entrusted to the joint secretary (budget).

The first Blue Sheet draft is prepared a few weeks before the budget date and it includes budget proposals on the government’s annual spending plan.

Among all the documents present in the finance ministry basement, it is the minister’s budget speech that is most closely guarded. It is handed over to printers at midnight, two days before the budget is announced. Since the budget is scheduled for February 1, the documents are most likely handed over on the night of January 30.

What’s inside the budget briefcase?

As part of keeping the budget a secret, once the documents are printed, they are put in a briefcase , which is then carried by the finance ministry on the big day.

In fact, the trend of carrying the budget briefcase, is a colonial tradition — coming from the British and was adopted by the first finance minister of India, RK Shanmukham Chetty.

Over the years, different finance ministers have carried various briefcases to Parliament on budget day with Nirmala Sitharaman resorting to the traditional bahi khata in 2019. Now she has switched to the tablet.

A lot has changed but one thing remains – the secrecy behind it all.

With inputs from agencies