Pre-Budget consultations to start from 10 October 2023, says govt

The pre-Budget discussions to finalise the revised estimates for financial year 2023-24 and budget estimates for financial year 2024-25, with respect to grants and appropriations, will start from October 10, 2023, a notification from the department of economic affairs said. The discussions will be chaired by the finance secretary and the expenditure secretary. 

The department of economic affairs has asked the ministries to ensure that their data for the pre-Budget discussion is ready and filed by October 5.

The pre-Budget meeting regarding the demands will be headed by additional secretary. 

The schedule for pre-Budget meetings has been prepared taking into account various exigencies and is being circulated well in advance, the notification said. 

The Budget 2024-25 is likely to be an interim budget, since it is an election year. It would be presented on February 1. The full budget is usually presented by the newly elected government after the general elections.

A budget circular was issued on September 1 to lay out the timelines for the exercise.