Budget targets a sustainable growth, says FM Sitharaman
Sitharaman accused the Opposition of spreading a ‘false narrative’ that govt is working for the rich
NEW DELHI: Union budget 2021-22 targets sustainable growth with greater allocations for key sectors and focus on uplifting the poor to achieve a self-reliant India, finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman said, accusing the Opposition of spreading a “false narrative” that the government is working for the rich.
Replying to the budget discussion in the Rajya Sabha on Friday, the minister said the budget is drawn from the experience of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, whose commitment for development, growth and reform finds reflection in the budget.
Referring to the global recognition to India’s effective handling of the Covid-19 pandemic, Sitharaman said: “False narratives were created...There is a lot of grudge in the speech of the former finance minister (referring to Congress leader P. Chidambaram)... not to recognize how honourable Prime Minister handled the Corona crisis. Today, the entire world is seeing how we in India have had less death per million, we in India have less active cases when there are countries which are seeing wave after wave [of covid-19)...”
Chidambaram had termed the budget a “disappointing” one in the House on Thursday, and a “budget for the rich, of the rich, and by the rich”. Earlier last week, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi had tweeted: “Modi’s crony-centric budget meansStruggling MSMEs (micro, small and medium enterprises) given no low-interest loans, no GST relief. The employers of India’s largest workforce betrayed.”
Reacting to the criticism, Sitharaman said: “It’s now become a sort of habit for some in the Opposition to constantly allege whatever this government is doing ... False narratives is created to accuse saying, oh, this government works only for cronies.”
The minister spelt out details of some of the works done by the Modi government for the poor, including the completion of over 1.67 crore houses for the poor under the PM Aawas Yojana, electrification of more than 2.67 crore houses since October 2017, order value of ₹8,22,077 crore placed in the government’s e-marketplace. Sitharaman said all these benefits have gone to the poor and small enterprises and not to the rich.
She said total verified applications on the national scholarship portal are over 90 million and these people are getting scholarships. “Whom are these fellowships going? Are they going for the rich? Are they going for the capitalists? Are they going for the cronies who the UPA government had happily encouraged? And now to stand up (in the house), and each time create the false narrative,” she said.
She said approximately 1.69 crore farmers are registered at e-NAM or online National Agriculture Market to get connected across the country for better price for their produce and not “constricted” by the local market. “Are these farmers rich, corporate farmers? No, not at all, they are small farmers,” she said.
On the government’s disinvestment policy, Sitharaman said it was part of the reform process initiated in 1991. “The entire range the Congress party covered from high socialism (to) hybrid socialism with Indira Gandhiji’s Congress ... which was nothing but ‘license-quota raj’. And from there to 1991 without blinking an eyelid... They moved from the high socialism to come down to opening globalization and everything else,” she said.
She said the Modi government’s policy is consistent with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Jan Sangh’s ideology of ‘Antyodaya’ or to take care of the people at the bottom of the rung. “At the same time, respect wealth creators, respect taxpayers, all citizens will have to be respected,” she said.
Sitharaman said the criticism that health and defence budget have been curtailed are incorrect, citing World Health Organization (WHO) that water and sanitation are an integral part of healthcare. “So, increased allocation for water has been based on the objective to provide tap water to ensure health for all,” she said.
Even the budget allocations to health departments per se have been substantially increased, she said. The minister said budget allocations to the health ministry were raised by 9.6%, ministry of Ayush by 40% and health research by 26.8% (year-on-year comparison of budget estimates or BE). Similarly, defence (revenue) saw 1.3% growth in the budget and defence (capital expenditure) grew by 18.8%, she said.