Budget session from Jan 31, Budget on Feb 1: CCPA

New Delhi: The Budget session of Parliament is set to begin early on January 31, a day ahead of the presentation of the Union Budget this year, which will also see elimination of a separate Railway Budget.
The Cabinet Committee on Parliamentary Affairs (CCPA) headed by Home Minister Rajnath Singh on Tuesday met and recommended holding the Budget Session from January 31 followed by the presentation of the Union Budget on February 1.
Both the address of the President and tabling of the Economic Survey are likely to take place on January 31, sources said.
The first phase of the Budget Session will run till February 9, they added. Early presentation of the Budget would mean that the entire exercise of voting on it and the Finance Bill is sought to be completed by March 31.
In between there would be a recess for MPs to vet the budget in department-related standing committees.
At a meeting in NITI Aayog last week, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had said advancing the date of budget presentation would help in getting funds authorised for different sectors at the start of the financial year.
In September last year, ending a nearly a century-long practice, the Cabinet had decided to scrap a separate budget for Railways and merge it with the General Budget, presentation of which was decided to be advanced to spur spending and boost the economy. (PTI)