BENGALURU: Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Friday held deliberations with top officials of the finance department, including Additional Chief Secretary L K Atheeq and Secretary (expenditure) P C Jaffer, on streamlining the implementation of the five guarantees.
The meeting chalked out a plan to save money for the exchequer through various measures by shedding “undeserving” beneficiaries. Discussion was also held on speeding up the exercise by removing fake BPL cards as a large number of families are beneficiaries of the Anna Bhagya scheme.
The Gruha Lakshmi scheme, under which Rs 2,000 per month is paid to woman heads of households, has also turned out to be a burden on the exchequer, the officials said. The meeting discussed cutting down on the number of beneficiaries so that only genuine and needy people get the benefit of the scheme.
The officials told the CM that the guarantees have become a burden and finding the way forward is a daunting task. But the government has continued with its commitment on the expenditure, they said.
Siddaramaiah also reviewed the half-yearly progress of the finances. It was found that the revenue collection was 3% less compared to the target. The revenue collection stands at 42-43% against the expectation of 46%. The meeting discussed the measures needed to reach the target for the financial year 2024-25.