Nirmala Sitharaman: A look at the duration of the FM's budget speeches

By Priyanka Deshpande

CNBC-TV18.com

Published July 23, 2024

Creating history, finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman presented her seventh straight budget on Tuesday for 2024-25, surpassing the record of former prime minister Morarji Desai.

Draped in a white silk saree with magenta border, the finance minister's budget speech lasted for 1 hour and 25 minutes.

July 2024

Dressed in blue and cream-colored tussar saree, the finance minister surprised the Parliament with her brief and concise delivery of the Interim Budget 2024 — the shortest Budget speech in her career — lasting only 57 minutes.

February 2024

In her fifth Budget speech, Sitharaman’s speech lasted for a duration of 1 hour and 27 minutes.

2023

In her 2022 Budget speech, Sitharaman spoke for a duration of 1 hour and 30 minutes.

2022

In 2021, when India’s first paperless Budget was announced, Sitharaman spoke for a duration 1 hour and 40 minutes.

2021

In 2020, Sitharaman set a record for delivering the longest budget speech in the history of India in terms of duration, speaking for a total of 2 hours and 42 minutes.

2020

In her maiden Budget, Sitharaman’s speech lasted for a duration of 2 hours and 15 minutes.

2019