President Droupadi Murmu leaves from Rashtrapati Bhavan for the Parliament House on the first day of the Budget session, in New Delhi

President Droupadi Murmu receives a Guard of Honour in the lawns of the Parliament building before her address to the joint sitting of both Houses of Parliament. Vice-President Jagdeep Dhankhar, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla are also seen in the pic

Addressing a joint session of Parliament, signalling the start of the Budget session, Murmu said the government has placed special focus on the education of youth and is creating new employment opportunities for them

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman. The Union Budget 2025 will be presented on Saturday

President Droupadi Murmu, Vice-President and Rajya Sabha Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla arrive for the joint sitting of both Houses of Parliament on the first day of the Budget Session, in New Delhi, Friday

PM Modi and BJP chief JP Nadda. President Murmu in her address said the government has decided to expand the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana to provide new houses to 3 crore additional families

Meanwhile, the Opposition on Friday dismissed President Droupadi Murmu's address 'directionless' and a 'document of lies' even as ruling BJP and allies welcomed it saying it presents a vision for 'viksit Bharat'

Leaders of Opposition Rahul Gandhi and Mallikarjun Kharge. The Opposition also said the President's address should provide a direction to the country but this was just a document of government propaganda

Opposition leader Sonia Gandhi stoked controversy over her reaction to President Droupadi Murmu's address to the joint session of the Parliament, calling her a 'poor thing', which received criticism from BJP