LUCKNOW: The budget session of the Uttar Pradesh legislature got off to a fiery start on Monday with Opposition members raising slogans against Governor Anandiben Patel and the state government as soon as she began her joint address to both the houses.
As the Governor started her speech, members of the Samajwadi Party (SP), holding placards and highlighting issues such as rising prices, unemployment, and the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, rushed to the well of the house, shouting slogans.
While the Governor continued to read her speech, Opposition members raised slogans such as "Governor go back", “This government is against Dalits”, “Stop telling lies and even “Inquilab Zindabad”, repeatedly asking her to stop reading what they called a “false address”.
Responding to the uproar from the opposition benches during her address, the Governor told the protesting SP legislators, “Your throats would hurt, you should stop.”
However, SP lawmakers refused to budge and continued their protest and slogan shouting. In the meanwhile, the Governor stopped her address briefly and told them, “Work was zero during your regime.”
In response, Assembly Speaker Satish Mahana assured the members that all the issues raised by them would be addressed in the house.
Before the start of the session, SP MLC Ashutosh Sinha reached the Assembly on a bicycle with a picture of Ahilyabai Holkar, a queen of the erstwhile Holkar dynasty, to raise the issue of demolition at Manikarnika Ghat in Varanasi for developmental works.
Soon after the Governor’s speech, UP finance minister Suresh Khanna presented the state’s Economic Review—giving a detailed picture of the state economy. It was for the first time that a state presented its economic review ahead of presenting the state budget for the current fiscal.
Khanna said that over the past year, no new taxes were imposed. The rates of petrol and diesel in the state were among the lowest in the country, surpassed only by one or two states.
Once hesitant to invest in Uttar Pradesh, investors were now willing to bring in up to ₹50 lakh crore, which the Finance Minister called a major achievement of the current dispensation.
He said that the state’s budget, which used to be ₹3.47 lakh crore in 2017, had now more than doubled to ₹8.33 lakh crore.
The survey presented by Khanna had a detailed transformative economic trajectory, with the state’s Gross State Domestic Product (GSDP) growing at a CAGR of 10.8%, doubling from ₹13.30 lakh crore in 2016-17 to ₹30.25 lakh crore in 2024-25. For the fiscal year 2025-26, the economy was projected to reach ₹36 lakh crore, supported by industrial investment proposals exceeding ₹50 lakh crore. This growth was anchored by the ‘Triple S’ guarantee—Safety, Stability, and Speed—which had significantly bolstered investor confidence, said the minister. The budget session, which commenced on Monday, is proposed to be 10-day long till February 20. The Budget will be presented in the Assembly on February 11.
State’s Economic Review at a Glance:
Infrastructure and Connectivity: Uttar Pradesh is emerging as India’s “Expressway State,” with 22 expressways (7 operational, 3 under construction, and 12 proposed). The state also features the country’s most extensive rail network and is rapidly expanding its aviation infrastructure, targeting 24 airports, including 5 international hubs like the upcoming Jewar International Greenfield Airport.
Industrial and Technological Innovation: The state has seen a doubling of registered factories to over 30,000 and a 25% growth in Gross Value Added (GVA) in the industrial sector, the highest among major Indian states. Strategic hubs are being developed, including Lucknow as an AI center, Kanpur as a drone hub, and Noida as a leading IT destination.
Agricultural Excellence and Rural Development: UP leads the nation in the production of food grains, sugarcane, potatoes, and milk. Significant progress is registered in doubling sugarcane farmer payments and expanding the total irrigated area to 2.76 crore hectares, supported by the proposed first-ever state Seed Policy.
Fiscal Discipline and Revenue Growth: The state’s budget has more than doubled in nine years to ₹8.33 lakh crore for 2025-26, while its own tax revenue has increased 2.5 times to ₹2.09 lakh crore. UP maintains a healthy debt-to-GSDP ratio of 28.0%, significantly lower than the national average.
Human Capital and Social Inclusion: The survey highlights the doubling of per capita income to ₹1,09,844 in 2024-25, with a target of ₹1,20,000 for 2025-26. Social welfare milestones include 5.46 crore Ayushman cards and 10.22 crore Jan Dhan accounts, both the highest in India.
Global Export Integration: Moving from 7th to 4th place in the Export Preparedness Index 2024 and ranking 1st among landlocked states.
Energy Transition and Sustainability: Increasing the share of solar energy in the total installed capacity from 23% to 27% highlights the state’s commitment to the green energy revolution.
Urban and Regional Development: The creation of the Lucknow State Capital Region (SCR) and the pursuit of 100 new townships signal a move towards structured urbanization.
Leveraging Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI): Ranking 1st in e-Prosecution and utilizing DBT for 3.12 crore PM-Kisan beneficiaries underscores the state’s leadership in trust-based, digital governance.