Reaching out to every section of Chhattisgarh’s 2.55-crore population, Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Raman Singh on Saturday presented Rs 54,710 crore tax-free Budget in the State Assembly for the fiscal 2014-15.
Singh holds finance portfolio, unveiled a series of tax relief policies for the local industries and cottage industries to revive them from recession. In one of the major decisions for the farmers community, which makes up roughly 80 per cent of State’s total population, Singh has made a budgetary provision of Rs 140 crore for “interest free short-term crop loans”.
The key trade bodies and the business personalities in the State have hailed the budget as “balanced and growth-oriented” while the Opposition Congress termed it, “disappointing, directionless, anti-farmers and anti-poor”.
Highlighting the priorities of his Government, Singh said that he was committed to overcome poverty, hunger and malnutrition. He emphasised on “strengthening of human resources, specially the marginalised sections of society and prosperity of farmers which will lead to better development of the State and this will be achieved through people-oriented, transparent and accountable administration”.
The Budget has made a provision of Rs 3,900 crore for providing rice at Re 1 per Kg to 85 per cent families of the State under “Mukhya Mantri Khaddyanna Suraksha Yojana” towards implementation of the Food and Nutrition Security Act. A provision of Rs 8,459 crore has been made for the agriculture and allied sectors and the Chief Minister announced in the House about providing the incentive to the farmers at the rate of Rs 300 per Quintal for paddy procurement of 2013 Kharif. And he has provisioned Rs 2,400 crore for the same in the Budget.