Chief Minister, Jai Ram Thakur was cool and composed as he replied to the heated budget debate on Friday with details at length to prove that his first budget (for 2018-19) has new schemes not the old ones as alleged by Congress.
He said it was his first budget and he had to work hard, but he was happy that he could do it, encompassing 28 new schemes for the benefit of all the sections with proper budget provision for everything. He said everyone has praised the budget, except for Congress men.
The budget debate was one of the longest in the Himachal Prasad Assembly, according to Speaker, Dr Rajeev Bindal, and it stretched for 16.49 hours over the last four days with 47 members from the ruling and Opposition benches participating in it.
Well prepared to corner Opposition Congress, the CM told the Congress Legislature Party Leader, Mukesh Agnihotri to speak on facts in view of his increased responsibility.
His revelation that the previous Congress government met Rs 75 lakh expenditure on Himachal Road Transportation Corporation (HRTC) buses used for ferrying people for Rahul Gandhi’s rally in Mandi last year from government accounts infuriated Congress members. Led by CLP leader, the Congress members staged a walk out, alleging that the CM was trying to twist the facts and they were dissatisfied with the reply.
Thakur said the Congress members had criticised the budget for the heck of it despite the fact that the government has tried to put the things back on rail.
Thakur said the previous Congress government had upgraded 270 schools at different levels and had opened 16 degree colleges just before the model code of conduct came into force last year, without bothering about staff, infrastructure. A number of them did not have even financial concurrence.
He said the government will have to review the decisions taken by the previous Congress in its last six months, whether it were institutions in education or health.
The CM said the government proposes to open ten residential schools in the state, which will have best staff and infrastructure to provide quality education to students. Later, the government can think of opening one such school each in Assembly constituencies.
He said the previous Congress government had incurred losses to the state in the Excise policy, which has now been revised. Thakur said the Congress members had staged walk out again as a ritual to hog limelight in media.