Bihar govt. presents ₹2.61 lakh crore ‘revenue surplus Budget’ for fiscal 2023-24
The Hindu
While emphasising on employment, health and education the Finance Minister asked for special status for Bihar
Bihar Finance Minister Vijay Kumar Choudhary on February 28, 203 tabled over ₹2.61 lakh crore ‘revenue surplus Budget’ in the State Assembly, while putting thrust on employment, health and education sectors. Mr. Choudhary also demanded special status for Bihar, from the Central government.
“In our estimated revenue arrangement this is a revenue surplus Budget in which the State’s growth rate will be above 10%,” he told mediapersons, after presenting the Budget for the fiscal year 2023-24 in the State Assembly. Mr. Choudhary also put thrust on employment, health and education sectors in the Budget and said the expenditure on social services had been increased by 11 times in the State.
“Within the primary sector, the two most important contributors to the growth of GSDP have been livestock and fishing, aquaculture, registering growth rates of 9.5% and 6.7%, respectively”, he said.
The total proposed Budget expenditure of ₹2,61,885.40 crore for the fiscal year 2023-24 is ₹24,194.21 crore more than the previous financial year. The fiscal deficit remained at 3.78% of the State Gross Domestic Product (SGDP), which is under the prescribed conditional limit of 4.5%. The Budget also pointed out that the grants-in-aid expected from the Centre for the current fiscal year was estimated at ₹53,377.92 crore, which was ₹4,623.37 crore less than what was received in the previous fiscal year. However, the Budget noted a slight increase in the State’s share in Central taxes which was at ₹1,02,737.26 crore for 2023-24 and had been ₹376.12 crore more than the previous year.
“The economy of Bihar is one of the fastest growing in India. Bihar’s 10.98% growth is third among the top five fastest-growing States in the country,” Mr. Choudhary said while listing the development and money allotted in different sectors of the State. “Several schemes like Har Ghar Nal Jal Yojna of the State government have been replicated at the national level too. Bihar has set an example in several schemes of the Central and State governments,” he added.
Later, while taking a dig at the Central government for ignoring Bihar’s share in grants of different Centrally sponsored schemes, he said, “if special status to Bihar is not given, the Central government, at least, should make arrangement of giving 90-10% basis (90% from the Centre and 10% from the State) grants to the State.
The economic expert Nawal Kishore Choudhary, though, dubbed the Budget as an “average Budget”. He also gave just-pass mark (3 out of 10 in marks) to it. “Growth cannot be done without industrialisation and there is very minimal allocation of funds in the Budget for the same. Last year it was just 0.6% which was less than 1%”, said Mr. Choudhary, a retiredd Economics professor of Patna University and noted commentator on social and economic issues. The Opposition BJP too called it a “pessimistic” Budget.
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