UP Budget loosens purse for airport, Metro, youth
`200cr set aside for Kashi Vishwanath
Lucknow, Feb. 18: The Uttar Pradesh government on Tuesday set aside `500 crore for an airport in Ayodhya and `200 crore for the beautification of Varanasi’s Kashi Vishwanath temple in a Budget that is also big on road and metro rail projects.
The Budget presented in the state Assembly by finance minister Suresh Kumar Khanna provides `2,000 crore for the new airport project at Jewar near Delhi.
The Kanpur Metro Rail Project gets `358 crore and `286 crore has been allocated for the metro rail in Agra. It has earmarked `200 crore more for metro rail projects in Gorakhpur and other cities.
The 2020-21 Budget sets a target for the construction of four lakh houses for the weaker sections within a year and lists schemes to help the youth make a living. New universities will come up in Aligarh, Azamgarh and Saharanpur.
Addressing reporters later, chief minister Yogi Adityanath called the Budget — the fourth presented by his government — “historic”, “growth-oriented” and “people-friendly”.
Opposition parties, however, termed it “directionless” and a “farce”.
The `5.12 lakh crore Budget is bigger than the one presented last year by `33,159 crore. It has provisions for new schemes worth `10,967 crore, Mr Khanna said.
Among the major allocations is `500 crore for an airport at Ayodhya, where the construction of a Ram temple is expected to begin in the next few months.
In addition, the state government will spend `85 crore for the development of the pilgrim city as a tourist spot. Another `10 crore will go on the renovation of the Tulsi Smarak Bhawan, dedicated to the author of Ramcharitmanas.
The Budget allocates `200 crore for the expansion and beautification of Kashi Vishwanath temple in Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Varanasi constituency.
Another `180 crore will go on setting up a cultural centre in the holy city.
The government announced two new schemes for employment to the youth — the Chief Minister's Apprenticeship Promotion Scheme (CMAPS) and the Yuva Udhyamita Vikas Abhiyan (YUVA).