Budget 2024: All you need to know about key Budget documents

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman is all set to present the Union Budget for the financial year 2024-25 on February 1. The government, in each Budget, presents a number of documents in the Lok Sabha that contain details of budget proposals.

The Union Budget comprises a series of documents and a few are prepared as mandated by the Constitution of India. These documents help to get a quick and easy understanding of the Union Budget.

Let’s take a look at the key Budget documents:

Finance Minister's Speech

The Budget Speech of the Finance Minister contains commentary on growth prospects, Gross Domestic Product, the state of the economy and new measures taken by the government. The speech also covers key announcements on various sectors, revenue, expenditure, allocations and tax measures. Overall, the Budget speech summarises the economic scenario, projections for the coming financial year and government’s policy direction.

Key to Budget Document

The government releases an explainer along with the budget documents which clarifies various key terms used in the budget document.

Annual Financial Statement (AFS)

The government presents the Annual Financial Statement (AFS) which shows estimated expenditure and receipts during the financial year that runs from April 1 to March 31. The statement is the main Budget document which is referred to as the Budget Statement.

Mandated under Article 112 of the Constitution of India, the Annual Financial Statement includes budget and revised estimates of expenditure. The document also contains the government receipts for the current fiscal and actuals for the previous financial year.

The budget document shows receipts and disbursements under the revenue and capital heads. The disbursements and allocations are shown from three main accounts of the government. These are the Consolidated Fund, the Contingency Fund and the Public Account.

Demands for Grants (DG)

The expenditure estimates from the Consolidated Fund are submitted in the form of Demand for Grants. The Demands for Grants are presented in respect of each ministry or department. Under Article 113 of the Constitution, the Demands for Grants presented as part of the Annual Financial Statement need to be voted by Lok Sabha for making any withdrawals from the Consolidated Fund.

The government moved 102 Demands for Grants in Union Budget 2023-24. Each Demand gave details of ‘revenue’ and ‘capital’ expenditure.

Finance Bill

A Finance Bill details about imposition, remission, changes or abolition of various duties and taxes that are proposed in the Budget. The Finance Bill is presented as a Money Bill in Parliament as per the provisions of Article 110 (1) (a) of the Constitution.

**Expenditure Budget **

In this section, the government gives details about the financial provisions made for a scheme or a programme under each department or ministry. These are shown as Major Heads in the Revenue and Capital sections in a Demand for Grants.

The estimates in the Expenditure Budget allotted for a scheme or programme are shown on a net basis.

Receipt Budget

Under the Receipt Budget, the government gives details of tax and non-tax revenue receipts and capital receipts and explains the estimates.

The Receipt Budget also provides a statement on the arrears of tax revenues and non-tax revenues. The document also includes receipts statement related to the National Small Savings Fund (NSSF), Statement of Liabilities, Statement of Guarantees given by the government.

FRBM Act Related Documents

The documents as per the provisions of Fiscal Responsibility and Budget Management Act, 2003, contain macro-economic framework statement. These documents also include medium term fiscal policy statement and fiscal policy strategy statement.

Memorandum Explaining the Provisions in the Finance Bill

The document explains the provisions and their implications for a better understanding of the taxation proposals contained in the Finance Bill.

Implementation of Budget Announcements

The Budget document gives an account of implementation of the announcements made by the Finance Minister in the previous Budget speech.