How long was Sitharaman's 2025 Budget speech
What's the story
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday presented her eighth consecutive Union Budget for the fiscal year 2025-26. This is the second full budget of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's third term in office. The budget speech, which came with major taxpayer benefits, lasted for one hour and 17 minutes (77 minutes). It is shorter than last year's address, which lasted one hour and 25 minutes (85 minutes).
Historical overview
A look at Sitharaman's budget speeches over the years
Sitharaman delivered her shortest speech yet, at just 56 minutes, in the interim budget of 2024. In 2023 and 2022, her addresses were a bit longer, at 87 and 92 minutes, respectively. The first-ever paperless budget was presented in 2021 with a speech duration of one hour and 40 minutes (100 minutes).
Record breaker
Sitharaman's record-breaking budget speech in 2020
In 2020, Sitharaman had set a record with the longest budget speech in India's history—two hours and 41 minutes (161 minutes). Her first budget speech as India's first full-time woman finance minister was delivered in 2019 and lasted two hours and 17 minutes (137 minutes). She reportedly didn't even stop for a water break.