Which Indian budget introduced a statement highlighting the gender sensitivities of the budgetary allocations?

The correct answer is 2005-06.

Key Points

• India began producing a gender budget concurrently with its Union budget in 2005.
• The gender budget is a project that uses a gendered perspective to track and distribute public expenditures.
• The emphasis is on enhancing women's welfare through legislative initiatives.
• The entire budgetary allotment for gender-responsive budgeting (GRB) in the Union budget for FY 2021–22 was reduced by 26% from the Revised Estimates of FY 2020–21.
• The gender budget was increased in the Revised Estimates for 2020–21 due to the pandemic's disproportionate impact on women.
• However, the gender budget for the current fiscal year was just 4.4% of the entire Union budget for FY 2021–2022.

Additional Information

• The Union Budget of India also referred to as the Annual Financial Statement in Article 112 of the Constitution of India, is the annual budget of the Republic of India.
  • The Government presents it on the first day of February so that it could be materialised before the beginning of the new financial year in April.
  • Until 2016 it was presented on the last working day of February by the Finance Minister in Parliament.
  • The budget division of the department of economic affairs (DEA) in the finance ministry is the nodal body responsible for producing the budget.
  • It is presented by means of the Finance bill and the Appropriation bill has to be passed by Lok Sabha before it can come into effect on 1 April, the start of India's financial year.
  • Since 1947, there have been a total of 73 annual budgets, 14 interim budgets and four special budgets, or mini-budgets.