A Quick Recap

Since Independence

Ramasamy Chetty Kandasamy

Shanmukham Chetty

Served as independent India's first finance minister from 1947

to 1949

However, it was not the budget but a review of the economic

scenario that India was in at that time

He Also served as President of India's Central Legislative

Assembly from 1933 to 1935 and Diwan of Cochin kingdom from

1935 to 1941

Chintaman Dwarakanath

Deshmukh

He was the finance minister of India from 1950-1957.

He was the first one to present the budget in the first elected

parliament. While presenting the budget for 1950-51, he

announced the formation of the Planning Commission

Was the first Indian to be appointed as the Governor of the Reserve Bank of India in 1943 by

the British Raj

Jawaharlal Nehru

After Krishnamachari resigned from the post of Finance Minister, Jawaharlal Nehru took over

He was the Prime Minister then

He presented the budget for 1958-59

He emerged as the paramount leader of the Indian Independence Movement under the tutelage of

Mahatma Gandhi

He ruled India from its establishment as an independent nation in 1947 until his death in

office in 1964

Morarji Ranchhodji Desai

In 1958 he became the finance minister

He presented five annual and one interim budget

After the fourth general election, he once again became the

finance minister and was on the post from 1967-1969

During this tenure he presented three budgets and one interim

budget

Indira Priyadarshini

Gandhi

After Desai resigned, Indira Gandhi became the Finance

Minister

So far, she has been the only woman Finance Minister and took over the portfolio from

1970-71

She was the third Prime Minister of India

R. Venkataraman

He was the Finance Minister from 1980-1982

After the seventh General Elections in January, 1980 the

Congress Party returned to power and presented the interim and final budgets from 1980-81 and the annual budget for 1981-

82.

Later he rose to become the country’s Vice President and

President

Pranab Mukherjee

He took over the responsibility of the finance minister from

1982-1984

He presented the annual budgets for 1982-83, 1983-84

and 1984-85

He was the first Rajya Sabha member to hold the Finance

portfolio

He became the finance minister again in 2009-

2010

Manmohan Singh

He was the Finance Minister in 1991- 96, took over the position

again in 2008-09 & 2012

He opened up the Indian economy, liberalized trade and

encouraged foreign investors to explore Indian opportunities

He is currently the Prime Minister of India

Chidambaram Palaniappan

He was the Finance Minister from 1996-98

He took over the profile again in 2004-08 and became the Finance

Minster yet again in 2012.

He is the current Finance Minister of India