The State Government factored in Ministers' love for swanky cars and set aside Rs 67.50 lakh to buy them new ones in the second supplementary budget of Rs 1,327 crore tabled on the first day of Assembly session.
Ironically, in 2011 too, the then Government had allocated Rs 1.45 crore for buying 12 Tata Safaris to replace the existing vehicles. So, each of the Ministers is already enjoying a fleet of vehicles and a pilot vehicle and an escort jeep whenever they wish to take the road. The decision was reminiscent of 2004-05 when the then Government diverted Rs 15.70 crore from a police modernisation fund to buy 88 vehicles for Ministers and senior bureaucrats under the pretext of security compulsions.
But then, Finance Minister Rajendra Singh also sliced a small share of Rs 70 lakh in the Rs 1,327 crore second supplementary budget to buy a BMW car for Governor Syed Ahmed. The Governor presently uses Toyota-Camry. The budget is expected to be taken up for debate and passage on December 16. The first supplementary budget was pegged at Rs796.78 crore. The main budget for 2013-2014 proposing to make a planned expenditure of Rs 19,151.90 crore was tabled in Parliament as the State was under President's Rule.
The supplementary budget, however, came as succour for Housing Secretary Mridula Sinha, who could now hope to get an office and necessary logistical support to run her office. The Government had posted Sinha in September to the Housing department, which did not have its own office for the Principal Secretary.
In fact, the post of Housing Secretary, which has virtually a little work to do, most often ran under the additional charge of the Urban Development Secretary. Sinha is said to be operating right now in the Institutional finance department in Project Building or from her official residence.
Interestingly, the Government has sought Rs 11 crore for paying rent for the residential and non-residential buildings let out by HEC to the State Government. It has allocated Rs 30 crore for the dhoti-saree scheme and Rs 1.27 crore for paying salary to aircraft engineers, quality manager and technicians appointment for the maintenance of Dhruv helicopter. The State Government has allocated Rs 3 crore for blankets to be distributed in every panchayat.
JVM legislature party leader Pradeep Yadav wondered why the Government had to bring in a supplementary budget when the maximum amount from the main budget remained to be spent.
"The Government has utterly failed to use the funds of previous budget. Out of Rs 16,800 crore of the planned outlay only Rs 3,800 crore has been spent till date and that amounts to only 11 per cent of the spending. The present Government has spent just five percent of funds available with it. And therefore, supplementary budget was not required at all," Yadav said.
Finance Secretary AP Singh, however, told The Pioneer that a lion's share of the budget, Rs 972.11 crore to be exact, has been allocated for the State Plan (for development). Only Rs 258.12 crore will be utilised for non-plan purposes, he added. Singh pointed out that Rs 56.71 crore will be utilised for centrally sponsored schemes, while Rs 40.12 crore has been allocated for central sector schemes (100 percent centrally funded projects).
Around Rs 510 crore has been allocated to panchayati raj department to fund schemes in Naxal-affected districts while around Rs 200 crore has gone to the Jharkhand State Electricity Board (JSEB) alone as grant. Poking fun at the Government AJSU Party leader Sudesh Mahto said that the way the Supplementary budget had been brought in haste it it appears the government had come out straight on its real agenda.
Interestingly Congress legislator KN Tripathy said that he would not support the budget if it is for departments that had failed in spending their previously allocated funds. The supplementary budget should be for only those departments that have spent considerable amounts of funds allocated to them," he said.
Former Speaker and Ranchi MlA CP Singh though said that the supplementary budget has remained a tradition of the House, he warned that the BJP's role will begin from the next day of the session on December 16. Singh said that the sand issue had proved to be a waterloo for the government and it was to be seen how the government will execute its decision and in how many months.