‘No Budget for minorities’

NT Correspondent

Former CM and senior Congress leader Siddaramaiah has dubbed the state Budget presented by CM Bommai on Friday as ‘bland, anti-development and visionless’.

‘’The contents of the budget and the Pancha Sutra announced by the BJP government are totally contradictory. Since 1947 till 2018-19, the state’s loans were Rs 2.42 lakh crore and by March next year, it will touch Rs 5.18 lakh crore. The interest on the total outstanding loans is Rs 13,000 crore every year and now it had increased to Re 29,000 crore. Including the principal amount, the state must repay Rs 45,000 crore every year. The size of this year’s budget is Rs 2,65,720 crore. In the last four years, the state has borrowed a staggering Rs 2,66,000 crore,’’ Siddaramaih said slamming the govt’s fiscal management.

The coming years will be difficult as no money would be available for development with GST compensation set to stop after June this year. That is the reason why the Congress had demanded that the Centre extended the com - pensation period by another five years. The state will lose Rs 15,000 crore to Rs 20,000 crore every year on the count, he said.

‘’Our demand has been to implement the Mekedatu reservoir project; will mere allocation of funds help in starting the project? Can the project be started without environment clearance? The Mahadayi project has not been started though there are no hurdles in its implementation. The allocation of funds was very meagre compared to my government’s budget.

‘‘The minorities have been left high and dry. I had reserved Rs 3100 crore for their welfare but it has not happened in this budget,’’ Siddaramaiah lamented.