Hyderabad, February 21: There could not have been a better budget than the one he had presented to the Assembly in the prevailing conditions, Chief Minister K Rosaiah claimed today.
Speaking to reporters after presenting the budget in the Assembly, he said that he had given priority to the welfare sector without cutting the capital expenditure.
Rosaiah, who is also the finance minister, said that he had to take the salaries of employees and other inevitable expenditure into account and the finance department made a commendable job in this regard. “Generally, officials of the department are bothered with various demands. They worked patiently and diligently and came out with a viable budget.’’ Explaining how he was able to present a big budget again in the times of global recession, he said that though he was apprehensive about the preparation of annual finance statement, he had learnt a lot in the last four months and applied his mind to it and was able to make it. Usually he would say `no’ to any demand in contrast to his predecessor late YS Rajasekhara Reddy but finally learned to say `yes’ to the demands, he quipped.
Giving an account of how he had curtailed the revenue deficit, he said system management discipline obtained in the last four months made it possible to achieve the much-needed objective. Maintaining that the news dailies had written a lot on the budget and predicted lots of cuts in the expenditure on various sectors, he did what was needed for the State, he claimed.
Explaining the rationale behind the size of the budget, he said he was hoping for more assistance from the Centre and exuded confidence that the 13th Finance Commission might give funds more than what the 12th commission had given.
About the new feature in the annual financial statement for the next financial year, he said that the constituency development fund was raised to Rs 1 crore and from now onward the members of the Legislative Council would also get the same.
On why the government was not able to increase the budgetary allocations to irrigation and housing, he said that keeping the expenditure of other sectors was not able to do so.
“The process to get national project status to Polavaram reached the final stage and the approval of Union Cabinet is due. The Pranahita-Chevella project has also been proposed as a national project and I am confident that clearances will come. Besides, the State Government urged the Centre to recognise Devadula also as a national project,’’ Rosaiah said and added that he had urged the Centre several times to give national project status to at least two in the next financial year.
He said that under the Accelerated Irrigation Benefit Programme (AIBP) about Rs 500 to 600 crore would come from the Centre by the end of the present financial year. To a question on power, he said the sector was given Rs 4,500 crore in the next financial year, Rs 1,500 crore less than the present allocation.
As for railway projects, he said the government was ready to give funds if any one was announced in the railway budget on sharing basis.
About the demand of Telangana leaders that the region be given 42 per cent of the budget allocaion, he said that kept it in mind and tried to do justice to each region.
On loan waiver to weavers, he said a Cabinet Committee was constituted on the procedure to be adopted to waive the loans and after receiving its recommendations, the waiver would be granted.
Asked about how the government could mobilise Rs 3,000 crore from sale of lands in the midst of the recesion, he said things would improve.
–Agencies