Central Ministers and civil servants are being discouraged to go on leave during the New Year holiday period. "Holiday is the biggest luxury in this government... there's no room for such thoughts at all," said an official. Following demonetization, there has been an added sense of doubt and caution gripping officials who believe that any overseas trip by them may attract avoidable scrutiny. Since the PM himself takes no leave, as revealed in a RTI query, ministers and civil servants have been further hesitating to take leave even on personal grounds. Also, at the end of this year, additional work has piled up in view of advancing by a month the budget presentation schedule. The committee headed by former chief economic adviser Shankar Acharya is slated to submit a report on the feasibility of changing the financial year from April-March to January-December at year-end. Even Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, known for his large circle of friends and his inclination to travel and party with them on any occasion, is said to be working hard this holiday season. ''There are no parties scheduled by him,''said an officer. With the advancement of the Budget, end-December will be critical for the finance ministry. Officials say that meetings with other central departments for revised estimates have already taken place and budgeted estimates for the coming financial year are being worked upon. Pre-Budget consultations with interest groups from various sectors are also in full swing. The Budget will be finalised bymid-January and, hence, things are more hectic than ever in the North Block. On top of that, the demonetisation drive and the uncertainty regarding the goods and services tax have added to the workload, officials say. Further, the PM will travel extensively during the last week of December and then in the new year, to Varanasi, Mumbai, Pune, Lucknow and Patna, among others. Last year on the new year's eve, the PM had called 70-odd top bureaucrats for high tea at his residence, motivating them to come out with big ideas during a 70-minute meeting. This time, too, secretaries invarious ministries and departments are expecting a similar 'invite'. The PM could also call a meeting of the council of ministers to take stock of projects on December 30 over high tea. Last year, on the same date, the PM had sought a report card from ministers on various infrastructure projects. "Big elections