UP focuses on welfare of farmers, health in budget

LUCKNOW: The Uttar Pradesh government on Friday presented an election-oriented budget for fiscal year 2018-2019 with a focus on doubling farmers’ income, infrastructure development and the health sector.

“We have formulated the budget for the state’s all-round development, keeping in mind all sections of society, including farmers, youth, women and rural development, while maintaining financial discipline,” chief minister Yogi Adityanath told reporters after the budget was tabled.

With a budgetary size of ₹4,28,384.53 crore, an increase of 11.4% against the previous year (2017-2018), the budget incorporates new schemes worth ₹14,341.89 crore for 2018-2019.

The government gave special emphasis to sectors such as health, education and religious tourism, which are directly related to the people.

However, a major challenge of mobilising resources stares the state government in the face as no new taxes have been proposed to fund the budgetary allocations despite the declining receipts that are expected to come down from the budgeted ₹3,77,190.88 crore to ₹3,60,165.78 crore in 2017-2018.

Minister for finance Rajesh Agarwal in his budget speech said a roadmap had been developed to double farmers’ income and an amendment to the Uttar Pradesh Mandi Act was proposed to ease the process of marketing the farmers’ produce. Agarwal spoke about crop insurance schemes, development of tribes living in remote border villages and the introduction of the digital payment process. He said projects worth ₹2,500 crore have been proposed for the development of rural roads. “Allocation for irrigation projects includes ₹1,701 crore for Central Ganga Canal Project and ₹500 crore for Kanhar Irrigation Project,” he said.

In his 45-page budget speech, the finance minister invoked Lord Ram and Krishna and said UP’s growth rate had gone up due to policy reforms and financial discipline.

Major allocations for infrastructure projects include ₹650 crore for Bundelkhand Expressway, ₹1,000 crore for Poorvanchal Expressway, ₹500 crore for Gorakhpur Link Expressway and ₹11,343 crore for construction of new roads. Other major allocations for infrastructure projects include ₹500 crore for the recently opened Agra-Lucknow Expressway, ₹250 crore for new Metro rail projects and ₹250 crore to be provided for Delhi, Ghaziabad and Meerut corridor regional rapid system project.

To set up a Start-Up Fund and introduce robotic surgery at the Sanjay Gandhi (PG) Institute of Medical Sciences in Lucknow, the government earmarked ₹250 crore.

It also set aside ₹2,757 crore for minorities, including ₹400 crore for modernisation of madrasas.

A sum of ₹1,500 crore has been provided for the Kumbh Mela.