Budget lacks vision, is directionless: Jakhar

Tuesday, 22/07/2014

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CHANDIGARH: Concluding the debate on the budget presented by the SAD-BJP government in the Vidhan Sabha, leader of opposition Sunil Jakhar on Monday said the budget “lacked vision” and was “directionless”.

According to Jakhar, the state government is paying ₹ 8,000 crore interest on loans every month, which means the per capita burden of interest is ₹ 8 every day. “In the last financial year, the government functioned on overdraft for 49 days, which shows the poor fiscal position,” he said, adding that financial experts “suspected integrity of the budget”.

Referring to a study tour of the state government to Gujarat, Jakhar said Punjab could not follow that state as it did not depend on income on liquor whereas in Punjab major receipts (over

14,000 crore) were earned from excise on liquor.

Focusing on the agriculture sector, Jakhar said the state government should at least have sent a dissent on the negligible hike of ₹ 50 per quintal on paddy. “We are ready to accompany the ruling coalition to press the Centre for a respectable hike.”

Jakhar asked the government not to cry hoarse that the previous central government led by the UPA had not given funds for agriculture diversification. “₹448 crore sent under the Rashrtiya Krishi Vikas Yojana has not been utilised. The government is not doing anything tangible to promote maize as alternative crop. Of the ₹ 310 crore sent for making pucca water causeways, only ₹ 96 crore was used, and the government must set aside a consolidated fund of ₹ 200 crore for procuring sugarcane,” Jakhar said. “When the government is not supporting maize and sugarcane, what diversification are we planning?” Jakhar wondered.

He said the SAD-BJP coalition, which was not willing to accept MNREGA when it was launched, now depended on it for its minimum wages scheme of daily wages of ₹ 200. “But the government is not taking up the pending nine lakh applications to be covered under MNREGA,” he said.

Among the other issues raised by Jakhar were how the state government “must not befool people in case metro rail is not feasible in Ludhiana”.

He said there was no mention of CM Aawas Yojana in the current budget proposal even though it was started last year for two years.

Seeking simplified VAT refund system, he also said the master plan for Ludhiana city be renewed wherein CLU is required within city limits. On industry shifting out, he underlined that Trident was setting up terry towel unit in Madhya Pradesh, and Hero Cycles was setting up plant in Chennai.

“Don’t put sweeping blame on bureaucracy; name the black sheep,” he also said.