Style The Honourable Formation 29 October 1946 | Inaugural holder Liaquat Ali Khan | |
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Member of Cabinet
Cabinet Committee on Security Appointer President on the advice of the Prime Minister | ||
The Minister of Finance (or simply, finance minister) is the head of the Ministry of Finance of the Government of India. One of the senior-most offices in the Union Cabinet, the finance minister is responsible for the fiscal policy of the government. As part of this, a key duty of the Finance Minister is to present the annual Union Budget in Parliament, which details the government's plan for taxation and spending in the coming financial year. Through the Budget, the finance minister also outlines the allocations to different ministries and departments. Occasionally, he is assisted by the Minister of State for Finance and the lower-ranked Deputy Minister of Finance.
The first finance minister of independent India was R. K. Shanmukham Chetty, who also presented its first Budget. The incumbent Arun Jaitley, of the Bharatiya Janata Party, has held office since 26 May 2014.