The finance ministry today briefed the parliamentary penal about its decision to announce budget somewhere between 30th January to 2nd February as also the Govt. decision of merging general budget with railway budget.
Ashok Lavasa, Finance secretary, informed the member of Finance Committee about the objective behind the proposed budget reforms. He also answered the questions about pros and cons of merging railway budget with general budget.
According to the sources, Finance Ministry is contemplating to present the general budget between January 30 and February 2 with a view to completing the whole process by March 31.
The ministry said that advancing budget presentation date assumes significance as the GST would be implemented from the start of the new financial year from April 1, 2017.
The Govt would most likely need 8-9 weeks to complete whole budget process and it is likely to conclude by April 1.
The presentation of separate Railway budget started in 1924, and has continued after independence as a convention rather than under Constitutional provisions.