Railway Budget to be history

The Union Budget for 2017 is likely to be presented on February 1.

An approval for merging the Railway Budget with the General Budget was accorded by  Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Monday. With this the dates for presentation of the Union Budget will also undergo a major change.

According to a tentative calendar prepared by Sakthikant Das, secretary, department of
economic affairs, is as follows (all dates 2017).

• President Pranab Mukherjee will address joint session of Parliament on January 27.
• Presentation of Economic Survey on January 30.
• Union Budget to be presented on February 1.
• Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha will sit up to February 17 and break for standing committees to deliberate on the Budget.
• Both houses will reassemble on March 20 to pass the Union Budget.
• From April 1 the entire country will come under Goods and Services Taxation Act.

Jaitley is expected to inform the government decisions to the presiding officers of Parliament -- Lok Sabha Speaker Sumitra Mahajan and Chairman Rajya Sabha Hamid Ansari.

Arun Jaitley is also likely to write to Dr Murli Manohar Joshi, chairman, estimate committee, of the changes in the Budget presentations and seek his permission to end the legislative business for Union Budget 2017 by March 30 so that from April 1 GST can be implemented.

As leader of the Rajya Sabha Jaitley will also write to chairmen, business advisory committees of both houses, seeking their consent to have changes in the schedule of the Budget session.

What will be the impact of these changes on Parliament’s winter session? It is difficult to say, according to senior official familiar with changes in the calendar because in that session the enabling clauses of GST will have be passed. Once that is done, the changed schedule can be put in place.