In Gujarat budget: Rs 500 crore for cow protection; proposals for three medical colleges

Desai pointed out that the state’s gross domestic product had risen from Rs1.25 lakh crore in 2001, when Narendra Modi took over as chief minister, to over Rs 20 lakh crore in the past two decades. “The state is expected to register an impressive double-digit GSDP growth of 13 per cent despite the adverse impact of Covid,” he said, adding that per capita income had also jumped from Rs 19,823 to Rs 2,14,809.

Asserting the importance of cows and linking it with Lord Shri Krishna, the minister announced a provision of Rs 500 crore for the Mukhyamantri Gau Mata Poshan Yojana to maintain gaushalas and panjrapoles. An additional Rs 100 crore has been budgeted for addressing the issue of stray animals in urban and rural areas. The government has also allocated Rs 213 crore for farmers engaged in cow-based organic farming.

Free WiFi connections in 4,000 villages, Rs 8,300 crore’s worth of subsidised power for farmers and Rs 734 crore for free electricity for water works in gram panchayats are among the other highlights of the Bhupendra Patel government’s final budget.

A Gujarat Prakrutik Krushi Vikas Board to boost organic farming, centres of excellence for horticulture crops at Ahmedabad, Jamnagar and Kheda districts, and new all-weather fishing ports at Nava Bandar, Veraval-2, Madhvad, Porbandar-2 and Sutrapada are some other announcements made in the budget, which also has provisions for a medical university, 11 motorcycle-based health units, and new medical colleges at Botad, Jamkhambhaliya and Veraval.

The budget also proposes to create five seafood parks and an international, Rs 400-crore ceramic park at Morbi, and contains provisions to revive sick industrial units and sugar cooperatives.

The government also announced setting up of Gujarat Port and Logistics Company and addition of 45 new plots at Mathavada to increase the capacity of the Alang Ship Breaking Yard.