Hyderabad: The State Cabinet today set a deadline to the top officials of various departments to prepare proposals and allocations for budget session in a week.
Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao, who chaired the cabinet meeting, directed the principal secretaries and heads of departments to finalize the works pertaining to the budgetary proposals and allocations in just seven days. A senior official, who came out of the Cabinet meeting, told waiting mediapersons at the CMO that they were directed to finalize budget draft in a week.
When asked, the official made it clear that as per the Cabinet instructions, “we will be on the job to make proposals and allocations to sectors, projects and departments. Cabinet is said to have gave its nod for regularization of contract staff and increase in salaries for outsourcing staff and taken a decision to provide 3.14 per cent DA to employees.
KCR, who is on cloud nine for landslide in the civic polls and to keep the promise of giving one lakh houses for the poor, the officials are gearing up to make better allocation of funds in the coming budget, it is learnt. Also to offer housing facility to journalists in Hyderabad, the Cabinet is said to have given its nod for budgetary allocations to be reflected in the budget 2016. The Chief Minister discussed with the officials on government priorities and need-based allocations of funds.
Stressing the need for adopting austerity measures and tighten strings of coffers, the Chief Minister is learnt to have asked that non-priority sectors should get less allocations while the flagship programs like two bedroom houses for the poor, projects like Mission Kakatiya, Mission Bhagiratha, and welfare get better allocations. Besides giving Municipal Administration and Urban Development to IT Minister KT Rama Rao for proving his mettle in the GHMC polls, the Chief Minister favored redesigning the Dummugudem project. The Budget-2016 session is expected to begin either in February last week or March first week. (NSS)