First annual Budget of Telangana: Key Highlights
On 5th November 2014, newly formed Telangana State’s first annual Budget of Rs 1,00,637 crore was presented in the State Assembly by Finance Minister Etela Rajinder.
This Budget presentation was considered as a historical occasion for the people of Telangana as they take control over their own resources and fate after bifurcating from Andhra Pradesh.
Key Highlights of the Telangana Budget
- This Budget has proposed an expenditure of Rs 1,00,637 crore for the 10 months of financial year 2014-15, including a plan expenditure of Rs 48,648 crore and non-plan outlay of Rs 51,989 crore.
- The Budget also highlighted fiscal deficit of Rs 17,398 crore and the estimated revenue surplus is Rs 301.02 crore.
- Upliftment of the weaker section: Budget announced sub-plans for the scheduled castes and schedule tribes by earmarking Rs 7,579 crore and Rs 4,559 crore respectively.
- Scheduled caste welfare: Rs 1,000 crore was allocated in order to provide three acres of cultivable land to each landless family of the scheduled caste, develop it with irrigation and provide total cost of cultivation for the first year as a grant.
- Agriculture: In the Budget start government allocated Rs 7,099 crore for agriculture.
For loan waiver scheme for farmers, state government has paid the first installment of Rs 4,250 crore.
- Market Intervention Fund: Rs 400 crore is allocated for establishing Market Intervention Fund to ensure farmers get stable and remunerative prices.
- Seed bowl of India project: Rs 50 crore funds were allocated to develop Telangana in to seed bowl of India.
- Irrigation: Government has allocated Rs 2,000 crore for the restoration of 9,000 irrigation tanks and rejuvenates 45,000 tanks in coming five years.
Rs 6,500 crore is allocated for irrigation and complete four lift irrigation schemes during the current year in order to bring 2.97 lakh acres of land under irrigation.
- Water grid project: Rs 2,000 crore were allocated for the ambitious water grid project. This project with a total estimated cost of Rs 25,000 crore will envisages the supply of drinking water to every household in three years.
- Power generation projects: Government plans to add 20,000 MW of power generation to its capacity over the next five years
It includes 4,000 MW power plant of NTPC at Ramagundam and 6,000 MW thermal power plant by BHEL for which a memorandum of understanding was signed.
The State Government will also spend Rs 3,000 crore to provide free electricity to the farmers.
- Financial assistance for the families of martyrs: Allocation of Rs 100 crore towards financial assistance for the families of people who laid down their lives for the separate State.
The Government has identified families of 459 martyrs who will get Rs 10 lakh each.
- The Budget also announced setting up of a health university at Warangal.
- Provision under constituency development fund has been increased from Rs 1 crore per constituency to Rs 1.5 crore and an amount of Rs 234 crore was earmarked in the Budget.
Month: Current Affairs - November, 2014