Budget Session in Parliament to begin on January 31

The budget session of the Parliament will be held in two phases beginning from January 31 to February 11 and the second phase from March 2 to April 3. Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman gears up to present her second Union budget on February 1, 2020.

According to sources, the Cabinet Committee on Parliamentary Affairs directed that the first phase of the budget session must be held from January 31-February 11 and the second session from March 2-April 3 after a short break.

In view of the ongoing Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) row and economic slowdown, the onus remains on the government to address the nation about it. Opposition parties are likely to question the government over its plans to revive the economy in the session.

Experts say Nirmala Sitharaman's presentation of the Union budget 2020-21 on February 1 will be a balancing act rather than a pedestal for aggressive expansion.

Official GDP advanced estimates data released Tuesday indicated that India's economy is likely to expand at 5 per cent in 2020-21. It is the slowest pace of growth estimated in about a decade. A lot rides on the government's budgetary decisions as the economic indicators are expected to bounce back in the first six months of 2020-21.

The government's slew of industry-specific measures to boost demand have not succeeded in arresting the economic slowdown completely.

Since the government is also expected to miss its fiscal deficit target due to lower tax collections, there may be no announcements on personal income tax deductions. Instead, the government may skip all populist measures to focus on industry-specific boosters.