The UPA government's second budget will be presented by Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee on Friday. Definitive guidelines to the socio-political economic history of its times, budget documents are products of a complex policymaking and administrative process. In this section, we take a look at the various stages involved in the creation of the budget.

The first stage of the process deals with collating receipts and expenditures from various minitries. After this is done, budget estimates for the year are prepared. The macroeconomic backdrop will be subjected to rigorous study by the economic division.

The next stage involves discussions conducted by the Finance Minister with various stakeholders. After this is done, the finance minister engages the prime minister to update and receive feedback on the budget.

Confidentiality, the key

Budget preparations are secretive affairs with CCTV (closed-circuit television) also used as additional precaution. Not a single case of security breach in connection with budget preparations has been reported in the country's history. During the final week, some of the officials are locked in with little or no contact with the outside world.

Two days before the budget speech, officers of the Press Information Bureau, the government's public relations wing, enter the picture. A team of twenty offcials prepares press releases in Englis, Hindi and Urdu. These offcials are also locked in till the speech is delivered. Finally, ten minutes before the Parliament meets on the budget day, the Cabinet is given a gist of the budget.