Panjab & Other Opposition States Get Nothing from the Budget

The Panjab government had put forth several demands to be met by the Union Budget, which included a special budget for crop diversification, an additional 0.5% borrowing allowance for power sector reforms, an annual incentive of USD 229M for farmers who do not burn paddy stubble, and reimbursement for the Rural Development Fund. Panjab even tried to make its demands lucrative for the Union government by stating if the state can achieve diversification from paddy to alternative crops on 1M hectares, it could lead to a reduction of approximately 6-7MT of rice annually. This shift could result in substantial savings of over USD 344. Diversification in Panjab could save the Union government approximately USD 3.2B annually by reducing rice procurement costs by USD 0.46 (INR 40 per kg), USD 149M in fertiliser subsidies, and USD 172M annually for the state in power subsidies. However, the Budget fulfilled none of Panjab demands. In fact, none of the non-Bhartiya Janata Party and its allied ruled states got anything from the Budget. Panjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann said, ‘Panjab has once again been completely ignored in the Union Budget. There is nothing for our farmers or the youth—no industrial package or legal guarantee for MSP to improve the state economy. A step-motherly treatment has been meted out to Panjab.’ The Leader of the Opposition in the Panjab Assembly, Partap Singh Bajwa from the Indian National Congress described the Budget as a 'betrayal with our farmers.' Sarwan Singh Pandher, convener, Kisan Mukti Morcha said, 'The Union Budget failed to meet expectations of farmers and farm labourers. This Budget was completely silent on the welfare of farmers and farm laborers, for which we have been protesting for over a year now at Panjab’s border points with Haryana.'