FM Nirmala Sitharaman launches the Union Budget Mobile App as India gears up for first paperless budget
The government has launched the app for all Budget 2021-related documents that will be made available after the Finance Minister's speech on February 1.
As India gears up for its first paperless budget in history, Union Finance & Corporate Affairs Minister Nirmala Sitharaman launched the Union Budget Mobile App today.
The app will provide easy and hassle-free access to all Budget 2021-related information and documents to key stakeholders, MPs, media, and the general public.
Calling it the "simplest form of digital convenience", the Finance Ministry stated,
"The mobile app facilitates complete access to 14 Union Budget documents, including the Annual Financial Statement (commonly known as Budget), Demand for Grants (DG), Finance Bill etc., as prescribed by the Constitution."
The launch took place along with the customary 'halwa' ceremony that commences the "final stage" of Union Budget 2021-22.
The FM was accompanied by Minister of State Finance & Corporate Affairs Anurag Singh Thakur. "Other officers and staff of the Ministry of Finance, involved in the Budget preparation and compilation process, were also present on the occasion," the FinMin said in a tweet.
The Union Budget Mobile app has a user-friendly interface and is equipped with features like "downloading, printing, search, zoom in and out, bidirectional scrolling, table of contents and external links" and more.
The app is bilingual (English and Hindi) and will be available on both Android and iOS platforms, the Finance Ministry announced.
The app has been developed by the National Informatics Centre (NIC) under the guidance of the Department of Economic Affairs (DEA). It can be downloaded from the Union Budget Web Portal.
All the aforementioned Budget documents will be available on the app after the completion of the FM's speech in the Parliament on February 1, 2021. This will be the third time that Sitharaman would be presenting the Budget.
Post the Halwa Ceremony, the FM also reviewed the status of the compilation of the Union Budget 2021-22, and extended her best wishes to the officials concerned.
Edited by Anju Narayanan