Budget blues strike babus hard

Officials wait for end of pre-Budget reviews to start preparing Budget proposals

Even as the Telangana state government plans to present the state Budget on March 14, the finance department remains clueless over how to prepare the Budget proposals with Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao initiating day-long pre-Budget review meetings with two-three departments every day since the past one week.

Mr Rao is coming out with new suggestions on scrapping of some existing schemes, removal of some departments, clubbing of few more departments and allotment of funds.

Though there are less than 20 days left, the finance department has been unable to even prepare the draft Budget proposals so far.

Officials are worried over how to finalise t he Budget proposals and order printing of Budget books in the less than 20 days remaining when the CM is still holding pre-Budget review meetings every day.

Absence of finance minister Etela Rajender and finance special chief secretary Pradeep Chandra from crucial Budget meetings has further compounded the woes of finance officials.

While Mr Rajender is touring his home district Karimnagar, Mr Chandra has gone on long leave for leg surgery in US.

This is probably for the first time the pre-Budget review meetings are being held without the finance minister and finance special chief secretary.

The CM himself is holding these meetings with CMO officials and senior officials of various departments at his camp office in Begumpet.

A senior finance official said, “The CM wants all the changes suggested by him in this Budget itself. He wants to allot funds to each and every sector based on the needs in each district, irrespective of what was allotted all these years by taking the state as a unit. Though it is a good idea, it cannot be done now due to time constraint. Less than 20 days are left to present the Budget and a week’s time is needed to print budget books alone.”

The entire block of finance department in DBlock in Secretariat looks tense and worried as the deadline nears and Budget proposals still at the initial stage.

They need to finalise the proposals, get them approved by the CM before printing starts.