Source NDTV
NEW DELHI — In a move that signaled a definitive end to a 75-year-old colonial legacy, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has fundamentally reshaped the optics and execution of the Indian Union Budget. By ditching the traditional leather briefcase in favor of a digital tablet, Sitharaman has transitioned the nation’s most important financial document from a physical ritual to a high-tech event.
The End of the “British Hangover”
For decades, Indian Finance Ministers arrived at Parliament carrying a leather briefcase—a tradition inherited from the British “Gladstone Box.” In 2019, Sitharaman made her first strike against this “British hangover” by replacing the suitcase with the Bahi Khata, a traditional Indian ledger wrapped in a red silk cloth.
However, the “Big Break” occurred in 2021, when the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and the government’s “Digital India” push converged. For the first time in independent India’s history, the Budget went entirely paperless. The Finance Minister swapped the physical papers for a “Made in India” tablet, encased in a red sleeve featuring the national emblem.
A Timeline of the Budget’s Evolution
The transition from a colonial portfolio to a digital tablet represents several key milestones in Indian fiscal history:
Year Milestone Change Introduced
1947 First Budget R.K. Shanmukham Chetty uses a leather portfolio.
1999 Time Shift Yashwant Sinha moves the speech from 5 PM to 11 AM.
2017 Date Shift Arun Jaitley moves the Budget date from late Feb to Feb 1.
2019 Cultural Shift Sitharaman replaces the briefcase with the Bahi Khata.
2021 Digital Shift First Paperless Budget presented via tablet.
Impact Beyond Symbolism
The shift to a digital format was not merely for show. It brought about practical changes to the “Lock-In” period—the time during which Ministry of Finance officials are sequestered to prevent information leaks.
“The transition to a digital format shortened the lock-in period, reducing it from nearly two weeks to just five days, as the need for massive physical printing was eliminated.”
Today, the “Union Budget Mobile App” allows citizens and Members of Parliament to access the full set of 14 Budget documents instantly, ensuring that the transparency of the process matches its modern delivery. As Sitharaman prepares for her record-breaking ninth consecutive Budget in 2026, the red digital pouch has become the new standard of Indian fiscal tradition.
