Union Budget: Home Ministry sees 12% hike in allocation to Rs 2.19 lakh crore
NEW DELHI: Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has made an increase of 12 percent in the allocation (Rs 2,19,643.31 crore including funds for Union Territories) to the Union Ministry of Home Affairs in the Budget for the financial year 2024-25. The Central Armed Police Forces (CAPFs) have gobbled the largest chunk (Rs 1,43,275.90 crore) with a focus on concerns relating to internal security.
However, under the head Census 2021, which is already delayed, allocations have been reduced in comparison with the previous financial year. In the Budget for 2024-25, Rs 1,309.46 crore has been allocated for the delayed mega exercise, which is a significant reduction from 2021-22 when it was Rs 3,768 crore. This indicates that the decadal exercise may not be carried out even after a significant delay.
In the interim budget for 2024-25, the Finance Minister had allocated Rs 2,02,868.70 crore to the Home Ministry, which is helmed by Amit Shah.
An allocation of Rs 42,277.74 crore has been made for Jammu and Kashmir, which is currently under the direct control of the Union government after the abrogation of Article 370. Jammu and Kashmir was stripped of its special status in August 2019 and the erstwhile state was reorganised into two UTs of J&K (with assembly) and Ladakh.
In the budget, Rs 5,985.82 crore has been given to Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Rs 5,862.62 crore to Chandigarh, Rs 5,958 crore to Ladakh, Rs 2,648.97 crore to Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu and Rs 1,490.10 crore to Lakshadweep.
An amount of Rs 1,606.95 crore has been allocated for the National Disaster Response Force (Rs 1,666.38 crore in 2023-24).
Among the paramilitary forces, the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) got Rs 31,543.20 crore, up from a revised estimate of Rs 31,389.04 in 2023-24, the Border Security Force (BSF) got Rs 25,472.44 crore (Rs 25,038.68 crore in 2023-24), the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) was allotted Rs 14,331.89 crore (Rs 12,929.85 crore in 2023-24), the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) got Rs 8,634.21 crore (Rs 8,203.68 crore in 2023-24), the Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB) was given Rs 8,881.81 crore (Rs 8,435.68 crore in 2023-24) and the Assam Rifles was allotted Rs 7,428.33 crore (Rs 7,276.29 crore in 2023-24).
The CRPF is mostly deployed for internal security duties, operations against terrorists in Jammu and Kashmir, Naxals in central and eastern India and insurgents in the Northeast. The BSF guards India’s borders with Pakistan and Bangladesh and is also deployed for internal security duties.
The CISF guards vital installations like nuclear plants, airports, metro networks and the ITBP guards the Sino-Indian border. The SSB guards the India-Nepal and India-Bhutan borders and the Assam Rifles protects India’s border with Myanmar.
The Intelligence Bureau (IB) has been allocated Rs 3,823.83 crore (Rs 3,268.94 crore in 2023-24), while the Special Protection Group got Rs 506.32 crore (Rs 446.82 crore in 2023-24). The IB is India’s internal intelligence agency and the SPG provides security to the Prime Minister.
Meanwhile, Rs 3,756.51 crore has been allocated to the Border Infrastructure and Management, Rs 3,152.36 crore for developing police infrastructure, Rs 1,105 crore for schemes related to women's safety, Rs 9,305.43 crore for various central sector projects and schemes sponsored by the home ministry, Rs 3,199.62 crore for security-related expenditure and Rs 1,050 crore for the Vibrant Villages Programme.