New Delhi, February 1: Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman presented the Union Budget 2026 on February 1, marking her ninth consecutive Budget speech under Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The 2026 Budget also made history as the first Union Budget presented on a Sunday.

Over the decades, Union Budget speeches have varied widely in length, reflecting changing economic priorities and presentation styles. Some speeches stand out not just for policy announcements, but for how long or short they were. Budget 2026 Highlights: Nirmala Sitharaman Proposes Rare Earth Corridors in Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Odisha and Andhra Pradesh.

Longest Union Budget Speech Ever

The record for the longest Budget speech by duration belongs to Nirmala Sitharaman. While presenting the Union Budget in 2020, her speech lasted 2 hours and 42 minutes (162 minutes), making it the longest in India’s parliamentary history. Budget 2026 Live News Updates: No Change in Income Tax Slabs, Nirmala Sitharaman Concludes Her Speech.

During the address, she announced key measures such as the new income tax regime and the proposed IPO of the Life Insurance Corporation of India. Towards the end, Sitharaman felt unwell, after which Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla read out the remaining portion of the speech.

The 2020 speech surpassed Sitharaman’s 2019 record of 2 hours and 17 minutes. In contrast, her interim Budget speech in 2024 lasted just 56 minutes, making it her shortest address as Finance Minister.

Shortest Union Budget Speech Ever

The shortest Union Budget speech was delivered by former Finance Minister Hirubhai M. Patel in 1977–78. Serving in the Morarji Desai government, Patel presented an interim Budget with a speech of around 800 words, the briefest Budget address in Indian history. While the exact duration of Hirubhai M. Patel’s 1977-78 interim Budget speech is not officially recorded, its length of around 800 words suggests it would have taken roughly 5 to 10 minutes to deliver.

Longest Budget Speech by Word Count

While Sitharaman holds the record by duration, the longest Budget speech by word count was delivered by former Prime Minister and Finance Minister Manmohan Singh in 1991. His landmark Budget speech contained 18,650 words.

The second-longest speech by word count was presented by former Finance Minister Arun Jaitley in 2018, with 18,604 words.

Over the years, Union Budget speeches have evolved in both length and substance, but records for the longest and shortest addresses continue to remain a fascinating part of India’s fiscal history.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Feb 01, 2026 12:47 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).