Fintech hub with ADB support to come up at GIFT City

JP Gupta, principal secretary, finance department, told The Indian Express that ADB will be setting up a “training and incubation centre” at GIFT City that is expected to become functional in the next fiscal.

“GIFT City belongs to the Gujarat government. But we want it to be independent. We have given a lot of land and currently, GIFT City is earning out of that land. So more or less, it is on its own. Land is the biggest asset,” Gupta said when asked if the 2023-24 budget has made the smallest allocation for the GIFT City project in the past decade.

The first budget presented by the re-elected BJP government in Gujarat allocated Rs 500 crore for establishing a labour hostel in the municipal and GIDC areas, Rs 200 crore as equity contribution to Ahmedabad-Mumbai bullet train project, Rs 160 crore for Bharuch-Dahej Expressway, Rs 24 crore for resuming shipbreaking at Sachana, Rs 1,415 crore for Bhadbhut barrage on river Narmada and Rs 100 crore for building a bulk drug park at Jambusar.

The budget states that capital expenditure has been increased significantly as it helps increase “private investment in the state” that will lead to higher economic growth. “The capital outlay for 2022-23 was Rs 38,052 crore. This has increased to 91 per cent to Rs 72,509 crore,” said Mona Khandhar, Principal Secretary (Economic Affairs).

The tourism and roads and buildings departments have seen the highest rise in budgetary provisions for 2023-24 where there has been a 170 per cent and 71 per cent rise respectively.

The allocations for Narmada, water resources, water supply and Kalpsar department, and food and civil supplies department have also been raised by 43 per cent and 41 per cent respectively. The outlays for health and education have been increased by 24 per cent and 25 per cent respectively.