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The Economic Times

Economy / The Economic Times

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Lines that framed a nations future: When Budget speeches werent prime-time shows

Before Budget Day became a televised and social-media spectacle, Union Budget speeches were sober, number-heavy statements addressed to Parliament, not markets. Shantanu Nandan Sharma revisits pre-1991 Budgets to show how finance ministers blended hard fiscal choices with philosophy, geopolitics and dry humour. From war-time taxes to witty asides in the House, these speeches reveal the Budget as a human document, not just an economic one.

31 Jan 2026 11:25 pm