‘Halwa Ceremony’ marks the beginning of printing of documents relating to the Budget. It is a tradition which marks the final stage of the Budget making process. The ‘Halwa Ceremony’ is generally organized at the Finance Ministry headquarters in the Secretariat building’s North Block basement in the national capital.
The Finance Minister kicks off the celebrations by stirring the dessert in a traditional kadhai (cauldron) and then serves it to her colleagues. The Minister of State (MoS Finance) and other top officials of ministry are present during the ceremony.
The “halwa ceremony” is generally organized at the Finance Ministry headquarters in the Secretariat building’s North Block basement in the national capital.
This ritual also sets the stage for a significant event soon after. The North Block becomes Fort Knox for 10-odd days up to the presentation of the budget, where all officials and staff involved in the budget-making process isolate themselves to maintain secrecy about the document. Even the Finance Minister is bound by strict rules. However, she is the only one allowed to move in and out of the building during this period.
The “halwa” ceremony is organized as an effort to recognize and appreciate the efforts of the staff involved in the long-drawn budget making process that lasts months. The halwa is served to everyone who worked on the budget.
India has been in the middle of the third wave of the Covid-19 pandemic for days now, fuelled by the Omicron variant of the coronavirus, and has been recording lakhs of cases since January. Amid fears of the third wave, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will present the Budget 2022-23 in a paperless format like last year, the Ministry of Finance has said and there will be no ‘Halwa’ ceremony, to curb the spread of the virus.
The Union Budget 2022-23 is to be presented by the Union Finance and Corporate Affairs Minister Smt.Nirmala Sitharaman on 1st February, 2022 in paperless form," stated the Finance Ministry in a press release on Thursday, January 27.
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