The union budget is likely to be presented on Feb 26

New Delhi: The Union Budget is likely to be presented on February 26, according to top representatives in the finance ministry. The Cabinet will meet shortly to take a decision on the Budget date. The Budget is presented in Parliament on the last day of February However, this time February 28 is a Sunday, and the previous day (February 27) is a holiday too for Prophet Mohammad’s birthday. The government is therefore likely to announce February 26 as the Budget date. The last Budget was presented in July 2009 after the UPA-II government returned to power. So, within a space of 12 months (February 2009 to February 2010), three Budgets are being tabled in Parliament. In an informal interaction with journalists on Saturday, finance minister Pranab Mukherjee confirmed that the Budget date was being advanced. When asked about the health of the economy, Mukherjee reiterated that the GDP growth was expected to coincide with the mid-term review. According to him, a growth rate of 7.5 to 8 per cent is realistic for the current year. The FM recently said that 9 to 10 per cent growth was now achievable in the near future. The Union Budget is expected to focus on narrowing the steep fiscal deficit (estimated at 6.8 per cent of the GDP), disinvestment of PSUs and reforms in the banking and insurance sectors, among other issues. As for the introduction of the new goods and services tax (GST), by phasing out the central sales tax (CST), the scheduled deadline of April 1, 2010 may be missed. The FM may is against a hasty rollout of GST.