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Budget 2026: Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will interact with around 30 college students from across the country after presenting the Union Budget 2026-27 in Parliament on February 1. The initiative allows students to watch the live Budget presentation from the Lok Sabha Gallery which enables them to experience one of the most important parliamentary events that occurs annually.

The selected students represent diverse academic backgrounds, including commerce, economics, medical education and vocational studies, and come from various states across India. The students will observe Budget proceedings before they proceed to visit the Ministry of Finance at Kartavya Bhawan-1 to meet senior officials who will explain how the Ministry operates and how policies are developed and how institutions contribute to building the nation.

Sitharaman will meet students in the evening to discuss Budget matters which include Budget priorities and the long-term vision of India and its effects on the youth of the nation. Students will present their ideas and perspectives and aspirations during the discussion while they provide feedback about issues that affect young people and their role in national development.

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The government states that the initiative will help students become more aware of finance and economics and governance and democratic processes while it encourages youth in India to participate in parliamentary and financial systems through informed and constructive methods.

The Finance Ministry said that during the Budget preparation process, inputs were sought from citizens, including young people, through multiple platforms. These suggestions are expected to be reflected in the Union Budget 2026-27.

Sitharaman will present a record ninth consecutive Union Budget on February 1, becoming the finance minister with the most budgets delivered continuously under one prime minister. Her ninth Budget brings her closer to the record set by former Prime Minister Morarji Desai, who presented a total of 10 budgets across two stints as finance minister between 1959–64 and 1967–69.

Former finance ministers P Chidambaram and Pranab Mukherjee had presented nine and eight budgets, respectively, under different prime ministers.

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India’s first full-time woman FM, longest uninterrupted run

Appointed as India’s first full-time woman finance minister in 2019, Sitharaman retained the finance portfolio after Prime Minister Narendra Modi returned to power for a third term in 2024. So far, she has presented eight straight budgets, including the interim Budget in February 2024.

The Halwa ceremony was conducted at the Budget Press in North Block on January 27 as the last step of Budget preparation work. The Finance Minister attended the ceremony together with secretaries from different departments of the Ministry of Finance and high-ranking officials who worked on drafting the Union Budget 2026-27. With just a day to go for the Budget, industry and sectoral stakeholders have expressed expectations of reforms to support growth amid global and geopolitical volatility.