It is customary to have an halwa ceremony every year marking the final stage of the preparation process for the interim Union Budget 2024. This traditional ceremony was held at the headquarters of the Union Finance Ministry at North Block in Delhi.
Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman was seen unwrapping a huge iron wok and stirring the halwa before distributing it to the officials of the ministry.
This customary halwa ceremony is performed every year before the ”lock-in” process of budget preparation begins. This lock-in process is observed to maintain the secrecy of the budget and to prevent it from leaking before it is presented in the Parliament.
The halwa is served to all the officials who are directly associated with the budget making process. It is based on Indian tradition of eating something sweet before starting something important.
The interim budget will be presented on February 1.
