Union Budget 2026 : Schedule of Parliamentary Session Announced; Budget on Sunday after 26 Years

The complete schedule of the parliamentary budget session has been announced in the backdrop of Union Budget 2026. The budget session of 2026 will commence on January 28 and will continue until April 2, 2026. The Cabinet Committee on Parliamentary Affairs has approved the dates of this session, and President Droupadi Murmu will address the joint session of Parliament on the first day of the session.

This year's Union Budget will be presented on February 1, 2026, notably on a Sunday. For the first time in 26 years, the budget will be presented on a holiday, giving this event special significance. Typically, the budget is presented on a working day, but this year, this rare occurrence will be witnessed. Traditionally, an economic survey is presented before the budget. This year, Chief Economic Advisor V. Anantha Nageswaran will present the Economic Survey 2025-26 in Parliament on January 29, 2026. This survey report is considered an important document providing a detailed review of the country's economic condition. It is heavily relied upon when determining the strategic direction for the Union Budget.

Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju informed on social media that the President has approved convening the Parliament for the budget session as per the recommendation of the central government. The first phase of the session will end on February 13, 2026, while the second phase will start on March 9, 2026, and continue until April 2.

In this budget, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will present the Union Budget for the ninth consecutive time. Previously, P. Chidambaram presented the budget nine times, while Morarji Desai presented it ten times. This will be the 88th Union Budget in independent India. Notably, before 2017, the budget was presented on February 28, but the tradition of presenting it on February 1 started to implement policies at the beginning of the financial year.

The Economic Survey 2026 will present a comprehensive state of India's economy. It will include detailed analysis of GDP growth, inflation, fiscal deficit, external trade, as well as agriculture, industry, services, infrastructure, and manufacturing sectors. Employment generation, labor market, banking and financial sector, health, education, and economic inequality will also be studied. Additionally, there will be a focus on forward-looking issues such as digitalization, climate change, productivity growth, and demographic changes. Therefore, there are high expectations from the Union Budget 2026 among the general public, industry, and investors.