Budget Bytes
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Andhra gains while Telangana ignored
The Union Budget for 2024-25 reflected the prevailing political situation when it comes to Telugu States. Andhra Pradesh gained prominence while Telangana was completely ignored.
The reason is simple. Nara Chandrababu Naidu-led Telugu Desam Party (TDP) came to power in Andhra Pradesh with the support of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Jana Sena. Further, BJP, which came to power at the Centre with a reduced tally in recent elections, is relying on TDP’s support for survival. So, obviously, Prime Minister Modi can’t ignore the interests of TDP at this juncture. That’s the reason why AP got Rs 15,000-crore financial assistance for developing its Greenfield Amaravati capital, an assurance to expedite the construction of Polavaram irrigation project, funds for industrial infrastructure and grants for backward regions. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman mentioned Andhra Pradesh many times in her 85-minute speech, but Telangana did not figure even once. Congress, the archrival to BJP at national level, is in power in Telangana. So, there was no special treatment for Telangana in the latest Budget. Similar is the case with Karnataka where also Congress is in power. Interestingly, Uttar Pradesh, the country’s largest State by population, and Rajasthan, where BJP lost ground considerably in the recent Lok Sabha polls, did not figure in her speech!
Bihar the luckiest State this time
Bihar can be termed as the luckiest State when it comes to the Union Budget 2024-25 presented by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Wednesday. Nitish Kumar-led Janata Dal (United) is in power in Bihar with support of BJP. Incidentally, BJP has more MLA seats than JD(U) in Bihar. But BJP allowed Nitish to remain Chief Minister taking into consideration his stature. As BJP government at the Centre is relying on JD(U) support, Bihar received special treatment in this Budget with Finance Minister announcing airports, roads, tourism projects and funds for industrial infrastructure.
Blend of tradition with modernity
In a blend of tradition with modernity, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Tuesday presented her seventh consecutive union budget reading from a tablet PC that was wrapped in a red-coloured ‘bahi-khata’ style pouch. Dressed in an off-white coloured Mysore silk saree with a purple-golden border, Sitharaman’s budget speech, with a strong emphasis on employment generation, was 83-minutes long and peppered with frequent applause from the treasury benches and an occasional booing from the opposition. Sitharaman presented the budget from the first row bench in the second block. BJP president and Health Minister J P Nadda was seated next to her. The treasury benches welcomed the budgetary announcements by thumping their desks at least on 71 occasions during the 83-minute speech.
The strongest disapproval from the opposition was reserved for Sitharaman’s fulsome announcements for Bihar and Andhra Pradesh - two states where JD(U) and TDP respectively are crucial allies of the BJP-led NDA. Opposition members chanted slogans ‘Sarkar ko bachane wala budget’ and ‘sarkar bachao’, ‘kursi bachao’ budget as the finance minister read out a slew of measures for Bihar and Andhra Pradesh.
