Enhanced share in central taxes on Delhi’s Budget wish list

NEW DELHI: Ahead of the Union budget, Delhi deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia on Monday urged the Centre to treat Delhi on a par with the Union Territory (UT) of Jammu and Kashmir in the matter of its share from central taxes, the central assistance to UTS, and the disaster response fund.

Sisodia, who is also hold finance portfolio, made these demands at a pre-budget meeting convened by Union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman. “Being the capital of the country, and one of the fastest growing metropolises, the Delhi government needs to maintain an infrastructure that meets world standards. The Delhi government needs funds to invest in crucial departments such as education, health, social, food securities, transports, roads and hospitals, among others,” Sisodia said.

He appealed to the minister to increase the city-state’s allocation to at least ₹8,150 crore in the revised estimate of 2020-21, and ₹8,555 crore in the budget estimate for 2021-22.

“Delhi has five urban local bodies, of which three are major municipal corporations with a population between 39 lakh to 62 lakh (3.9 million and 6.2 million). As the powers and functions of the municipalities in Delhi are the same as that of the local bodies in other states, omitting Delhi’s MCDS from receiving its basic performance grants on technical grounds does not help the constitutional mandate of strengthening the city’s local bodies,” he said.

Sisodia said Delhi, with a population of nearly 20 million, should at least be provided ₹1,150 crore, along with an appropriate annual enhancement grant for its local bodies.

Considering the dire financial situation of the municipal bodies, Sisodia also requested a onetime grant of ₹12,000 crore.