Punjab FM criticizes Union Budget as “completely disappointing”

Chandigarh:  Punjab Finance Minister Harpal Singh Cheema on Tuesday strongly criticized the Union Budget describing it as “completely disappointing” and claiming that Punjab’s interests have been deliberately ignored. Cheema’s critique focused on the budget’s neglect of women, the poor, and farmers, along with its failure to address regional disparities. Cheema expressed grave concerns about the Union Government’s decision to slash fertilizer subsidies for FY 2024-25. He pointed out that this reduction would place a significant burden on farmers nationwide and have particularly adverse effects on Punjab’s economy, where agriculture is a cornerstone. “This move is alarming, especially given the Union Government’s claims of prioritizing farmers’ welfare and aiming to double their income. The budget’s omission of a crucial Minimum Support Price (MSP) guarantee only deepens the uncertainty facing our farmers,” Cheema said.  He also criticized the budget for not addressing the specific challenges faced by Punjab’s farmers, such as water management, crop diversification, and sustainability. Despite the state’s vulnerability to flooding, the budget failed to allocate significant funds for flood management and irrigation projects tailored to Punjab's needs. Cheema accused the Union Government of exacerbating regional imbalances by neglecting Punjab in favour of preferential treatment for neighboring hill states and other regions.

 Union Budget disappointed Haryana: Hooda

Chandigarh: Former Haryana Chief Minister and Leader of Opposition Bhupinder Singh Hooda on Tuesday said that Haryana is hugely disappointed with the Union Budget as there was no mention of Haryana anywhere in the budget. Hooda said the budget has also completely disappointed the farmers, small traders, middle class, poor and housewives of the country, because the people who are facing the brunt of continuous inflation and heavy taxes were not given any relief from inflation. The farmer's hands remained empty once again and this budget was silent on MSP guarantee. There was no increase in the amount of Kisan Samman Nidhi either. In June 2022, the number of beneficiaries of Kisan Samman Nidhi was 11.39 crore, which has now come down to 9.26 crore, he said.

Nothing for Haryana in Union Budget: Dushyant Chautala

Chandigarh: Former Deputy Chief Minister of Haryana Dushyant Chautala on Tuesday called the budget presented by the Central Government as a management budget to save the Central Government and not a budget in the interest of the common man. He said that the Union Budget has focused only on Andhra Pradesh and Bihar and the state of Haryana has been completely ignored. He said that this is the worst budget ever. Chautala said that the NDA government of the country has not only discriminated against the states but this budget has disappointed every section including the poor, farmers, laborers, and youth.

PGIMER, Chandigarh gets Rs 2200 crore in Union Budget 2024-25

Chandigarh: PGIMER, Chandigarh got Rs 2200 crore in the Union Budget 2024-25 for the coming financial year, which is Rs 276.90 crore and Rs 77 crore more than last year's Budget Estimates (BE) and Revised Budget Estimates (RE) respectively, said the PGIMER official in a statement. The Official said that the allocation for the creation of capital assets is Rs 350 crore (Rs 343.10 crore BE 2023-24/Rs 343 crore RE 2023-24).

Immersive show ‘The Real Van Gogh Immersive Experience’ on Aug 2

Chandigarh: Considered to be one of the most influential figures in the history of Western art, Dutch Post-Impressionist master Vincent van Gogh is also a popular choice for modern, immersive exhibitions where technology meets art. The Real Van Gogh Immersive Experience will kick off on August 2 at Nexus Elante Mall. Tickets for the exhibit can be bought on Insider.in starting from Rs 899. While his 2,100 artworks are scattered around the world in museums and private collections, immersive experiences that turn the walls and floors of exhibition space into a kind of technicolor van Gogh dream world have popped up around the world from New York to Sydney, and heads to the Chandigarh for the first time.