SRINAGAR: The PDP-BJP coalition government led by Mufti Mohammad Sayeed on Sunday presented the first budget of Rs 46473 crores and Finance Minister Dr Haseeb Drabu pledged not to go with beginning bowl to central government for any additional financial assistance or grants.
Drabu, the economist and former J&K Bank chairman, presented the first budget of the PDP-BJP coalition government in J&K Legislative Assembly in Jammu today. He also presented a separate power sector budget.
“In 2015-16 the total public expenditure is budgeted to be Rs 46,473 crore. Of this Rs 11,246 crore is for building assets and infrastructure, the remaining Rs 35,227 crore is for current or revenue expenditure. This is not a good position to be in. In fact, if anything, it should be exactly the other way round. But there is no way I can help it as it is a legacy of the last 30 years if not more,” Drabu said.
He said the total revenue receipts of the State in 2015-16 are budgeted to be Rs 42,137 crore leaving a resource gap of Rs 4,336 crore.
“This is going to be financed by prepositioning of the 14th Finance Commission grants without seeking any additional funding,” the FM said. He said there are three main themes in his budget. “First build the credibility and confidence of the government in itself and its financial management”.
“I assert in his House that shall not seek any financial assistance or grants from the Centre other than what is provided for in the Constitution of India for all the special category states as a part of the federal fiscal system,” Drabu said adding he shall not go with a begging bowl to New Delhi.
He said the goal of the coalition government is economic self-reliance and fiscal autonomy. “All of us want the J&K government to be able to pay not only for the salaries of its employees, but also for the development of its economy and the prosperity of its people.”
Drabu said starting from the next fiscal (2015-16), the budget will now have only two parts -- Receipts Budget and Expenditure Budget. “The expenditure budget will, in turn now have only the revenue and capital expenditure estimates.”
“The entire old classification of the plan and non- plan has been discarded. This is a major change which has far reaching implications on the allocation, efficiency and monitoring of public expenditure,” he said.
He said in the new system, they will formulate their scheme of financing the state budget. “We will change the Fiscal Responsibility and Budget Management (FRBM) Act next year to ensure that over the next three years, it is mandated that borrowings are used only to finance creation of capital assets.”
The FM revealed that due to devastation caused by the floods last year, total income of the state has declined by 1.5 per cent in 2014-15 to a little less than Rs 88,000 crore. “With this the average per capita of a common man in J&K has declined from Rs 59,279 to 58,888. These are advanced estimates. The actual figures which will come out next year will be much worse.”
“As a result of the decline in SDP, the tax and the non-tax collection, the revenue collection of the state too has plummeted. With incomes of people and businesses taking such a massive hit, it is but natural that revenues of the state government would also have suffered. The total receipts of the state decreased by Rs 4,100 crores,” he said.
While announcing slew of schemes for farmers, traders, women and employees, Drabu said, “large number of government servants, who had have to wait for months to get their salaries under plan head, will not have to wait any longer. By shifting all the plan revenue expenditure onto the revenue side from 2015-16, the hardships of these employees will be over”.