Bhubaneswar: The total budget expenditure till November of the current financial year 2024-25 was 43.1 percent against the previous year’s expenditure of 45.9 percent during the period, Law Minister Prithiviraj Harichandan told the State Assembly today.
As Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi, who holds the Finance department, is in Mumbai to attend the swearing-in ceremony of the new government of Maharashtra, Shri Harichandan has presented the Appropriation bill in the House on behalf of the CM.
Chief Minister Mohan Majhi had presented the supplementary budget of Rs 12,156 crore in the Assembly on November 26, augmenting the annual outlay of Rs 2.65 lakh crore presented in July. The House passed the Appropriation Bill amid walkout by opposition BJD and Congress.
Speaking in the Assembly, Shri Harichandan the spending has been slowed down by 2.8 percent in view of restrictions imposed in the Model Code of Conduct for election. Now, the government has stepped out to speed up the spending and high-level meetings are being held and the barriers in spending have been removed, he said.
He assured the House that the government will be able to spend all the budget amount by the end of the current financial year and the people will get the benefit. The debt stock and loan burden has remained within the prescribed deadline, the Minister said.
By the end of October 2024, the per capita loan burden remained Rs 20,177, which is Rs 2597 less than last year’s figure, he pointed out.
Shri Harichandan said the supplementary provision includes an additional allocation of Rs 10,155 crore for programme expenditure, under which, Rs 8, 121 crore earmarked for state sector schemes, Rs 2,011 crore for centrally sponsored schemes and Rs 23 crore for central sector schemes.
In the supplementary budget, provision of Rs 92 crore made for new scheme- Dharti Aaba Janjatiya Gram Utkarsh Abhiyan (DAJGUA), and Rs 142 crore for Constituency Wise Allocation (CWA) under Rural Development department, he said.
Similarly, the minister said, Rs 125 crore has been allocated for organization of Pravasi Bharatiya Divas in Bhubaneswar in January 2025, Rs 130 crore for establishment of centre of excellence in 22 ITIs, Rs 26 crore for management of Srimandir Parikrama project and Rs 5 crore for Ratna Bhadar of Lord Jagannath temple, Puri.
Besides, Rs 1,196 crore allocated for the flagship Subhadra Yojana, a cash incentive scheme for women. The state government has already spent Rs 4,180 crore by providing the first installment of Rs 5,000 to 80 lakh women, he added.
Under the scheme, eligible women receive Rs 10,000 annually in two instalments for the next five years. Government plans to reach out to 1 crore women within this financial year to disburse the first installment.