KATHMANDU: The government is set to unveil the annual estimates of revenue and expenditure — the national budget — for the upcoming fiscal year 2082/83 this Thursday.

According to the Federal Parliament Secretariat, Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Bishnu Prasad Paudel is scheduled to present the budget at 3 PM during a joint session of both houses of the Federal Parliament.

As per Article 119, Clause (3) of the Constitution of Nepal (2072), the Finance Minister is required to present the estimates of revenue and expenditure in the Federal Parliament on the 15th of Jestha every year.

Accordingly, the budget will be made public this Thursday. Faced with increasing obligations and shrinking revenue, the Finance Minister is preparing to propose a budget of around Rs 1.9 trillion.

The National Resource Estimation Committee has set a budget ceiling of Rs 1.965 trillion for the upcoming fiscal year.

However, there has been a recurring trend of presenting budgets that exceed the ceiling due to last-minute increases in demand during the final stages of budget formulation.

The opposition has been disrupting proceedings, demanding Home Minister Ramesh Lekhak’s resignation over his alleged role in the visit visa case.

They insist the House won’t function until he steps down and an investigation panel is formed. Still, they’ve signaled readiness to let the government present the annual budget.