Rajasthan Budget puts focus back on bijli, sadak, paani

Kumari announced drinking water projects worth over Rs 40,000 crore. This includes six major Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM) projects worth Rs 20,370 crore; Rs 15,000 crore for 25 lakh rural households under the JJM; and additional drinking water works worth Rs 5,180 crore for 183 cities and towns as part of AMRUT 2.0 scheme.

For energy, the Finance Minister announced works worth Rs 2,25,000 crore to meet power demands up to 2031-32 and an action plan for essential energy production for next 10 years. She announced works related to production of 20,500-MW capacity from conventional sources of energy and 33,600-MW capacity from renewable energy sources up to 2031-32. All government offices will also be given solar energy based electricity in a time-bound manner.

Under infrastructure, Kumari announced a 53,000-km road network in five years with an estimated expenditure of Rs 60,000 crore. Additionally, she announced construction, upgradation, repair and maintenance works of state highways, bypass road and flyovers with an estimated expenditure of Rs 9,000 crore; nine GreenField Expressways of more than 2,750 km and repair and maintenance works of 1,343 damaged roads and bridges in two years, with an estimated expenditure of Rs 644 crore.

For health, the Finance Minister announced projects worth Rs 27,660 crore, which, she said, was 8.26 per cent of the Budget. She also announced the Mukhyamantri Ayushman Aarogya (MAA) Yojana with new pediatric packages, among other things. Under the MAA Health Infrastructure Mission, works amounting Rs 15, 000 crore would be taken up in the next three years.

Other big-ticket announcements included 4 lakh recruitments in government jobs in five years, with an aim of over 1 lakh in the current year itself, of which 20,000 recruitments have already been completed. Overall, the aim is 10 lakh recruitments in five years, including those in the private sector.

Another announcement included plans to further develop Khatushyamji temple in Sikar with Rs 100 crore, taking inspiration from Ayodhya. “By turning Ayodhya and Kashi Vishwanath grand as per the wishes of the devotees, PM Modi has infused fresh enthusiasm across the country,” the Finance Minister said while making the announcement.

Taking a leaf from the Centre’s book, she also announced One State, One Election; One District One Product Policy; One District One Species (of flora) programme; a Matr Van (mother park) in every district, apart from a PM-Unity Mall in Jaipur with an estimated cost of Rs 200 crore.

On One State, One Election, Chief Minister Sharma said there are about five panchayat polls, seven municipal council polls, and over 8 polls in cooperatives annually. “I want to ask you what you think of One State One Election, we will discuss it later,” Sharma later said at a press conference.

Finance Minister Kumari said she inherited a weak economy due to the previous Congress government’s wrong policies but she took it up as a challenge and in her interim Budget on February 8 this year, she set the tone for strengthening the economy, infrastructure development and most importantly, “providing relief to the common man”. She claimed the BJP government has fulfilled over 53 per cent of its interim Budget promises as well as 45 points of the party’s manifesto for Rajasthan.

She said that the estimated revenue of the state for 2024-25 is Rs 2.64 lakh crore while estimated revenue is Rs 2.90 lakh crore.

Former Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot, who skipped the Assembly as he is recovering from slipped disc, termed the Budget “dull and directionless”. He said the Budget “does not seem to have anything to do with education, health and social security”.

“The lack of schemes now versus the work done by our government in these areas is clearly visible in the budget figures. This Budget has neither provided relief to the public nor has any roadmap for development,” Gehlot said.

“No Budget allocation has been made for the previous Congress government’s schemes to provide relief from inflation, like 100 units of free electricity, Annapurna ration kit, Indira Rasoi, free agricultural electricity etc., which means the public will have to face inflation in the coming days,” he said.

Presenting the agriculture Budget separately, Kumari announced Rajasthan Krishi Vikas Yojna (Raj KVY), wherein works amounting to Rs 650 crore will be undertaken. She also announced a subsidy of Rs 200 crore on agricultural equipment/tools for farmers. In another important announcement, she said that interest free short term crop loans amounting to Rs 23,000 crores would be given to farmers.

For youth, apart from recruitment, Kumari announced the State Skill Policy –Training for more than 1.5 lakh youth in two years and an ‘Atal Entrepreneurship Programme’ with funding up to Rs 10 crore, among other measures.

For civic amenities, she announced the ‘Rajasthan Regional and Urban Planning Bill-2024’; Shyama Prasad Mukherjee Zila Utthan Yojana with a provision of Rs 500 crore; purchase of 500 buses and an additional 800 buses on service model, including 300 electric buses, in two years; wi-fi enabled library and co-working stations in selected urban bodies with Rs 150 crore; underground work of electricity lines with Rs 150 crore; and solid waste management plants in 71 urban bodies, among others.

For industrial development, the Finance Minister announced a slew of policies: Industrial Policy based on ease of doing business and sustainability; Export Promotion Policy; Garment and Apparel Policy; Rajasthan Warehousing and Logistics Policy; Data Centre Policy; One District, One Product Policy and MSME Policy.

Kumari also announced a Tourism Policy and constitution of Rajasthan Tourism Development Board and the Rajasthan Heritage Conservation and Development Authority as well as various works worth Rs 200 crore at 20 major tourist spots, apart from a heritage plan worth Rs 100 crore for Jaipur’s walled city.

For the environment, the Finance Minister announced a ‘Green Budget’ from next year and a target of planting 7 crore saplings. Under ‘Hariyalo Rajasthan’, various works amounting to Rs 4,000 crore will be undertaken in five years.

The Finance Minister’s focus spanned from preserving and propagating tradition and culture to imparting and keeping up with modern advancements. Apart from Rs 100 crore for Khatushyamji temple, she announced special programmes in 600 temples on various festivals as well as renovation and developmental works in major temples and religious places. Kumari announced the decision to confer the title of ‘Kul Guru’ to the V-Cs of universities.

On the other hand, apart from free tablets, she announced digitisation of health records under Rajasthan Digital Health Mission and digitisation of 40 crore historical scripts at state archives in Bikaner.

Announcing several exemptions and reductions in registrations and stamp duty, she said that efforts have been made towards providing relief. Also announcing certain reliefs in commercial taxes, she said a New Investment Policy will be formulated and goods and services sold and consumed within the state will be promoted.