Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia today presented in the Delhi Assembly what he termed the ‘Rozgaar Budget’ 2022-23 which among other things aims to create 20 lakh new jobs in the national capital in the next five years.

“This year’s Budget is called ‘Rozgar Budget’! We aim to create 20 lakh new jobs in Delhi, in the next 5 years,” said Sisodia, who also holds the finance portfolio.

This is the eighth consecutive budget of the AAP Government.

“The proposed Budget Estimate for the year 2022-23 is Rs 75,800 crore, 9.86 per cent higher than the Budget Estimate of Rs 69,000 crore for the year 2021-22 and 13.13 per cent higher than the Revised Estimates,” the Delhi Deputy Chief Minister said.

Sisodia said in the budget proposals and schemes presented in this House in the past seven years, the priority was on education and health and it is due to this reason that Delhi has witnessed visionary investments in education and health.

“We have dealt with the COVID-19 pandemic but we are all aware of the severe damage it has caused to the social and economic progress of the entire country. Delhi is no exception to this,” he said.

The Delhi Deputy Chief Minister said in the last two years, for immediate relief,  some ex-gratia help has been given to the aggrieved and needy families/people by arranging financial assistance, ration, food etc, but immediate help is just an instant help, people need jobs.

“In my eighth budget in this House, I am presenting an agenda to create new jobs for the people of Delhi and to boost economic recovery from the damage caused in recent years due to COVID-19, GST, and demonetisation,” he said.

Sisodia said the schemes and proposals presented in this budget will not only provide new entrepreneurship opportunities to the youth of Delhi, but will also benefit the already established enterprises and businesses.

“I would like to present to the House the ‘Rozgar Budget’ for the coming financial year in this House,” he said.

“Through the Rozgar Budget, we aim to restart and strengthen the engine of economic growth,” the Delhi Deputy Chief Minister said.

“Economy of Delhi is slowly emerging from challenges amid the five waves of COVID-19 and due to this the GSDP of Delhi at the current market prices is likely to increase from Rs 7,85,342 crore in 2020-21 to Rs 9,23,967 crore in 2021-22. An increase of 17.65 per cent,” he said.

“I would also like to clarify that the real growth rate of Delhi’s GSDP in the year 2021-22 is likely to be 10.23 per cent. Whereas at the national level, this growth rate is estimated to be 8.9 per cent. We are again reaching the level of pre-pandemic economic activities,” the Delhi Deputy Chief Minister said.

He said the contribution of Delhi’s real GSDP to GDP at the national level has increased from 3.94 per cent in 2011-12 to 4.21 per cent in 2021-22. Whereas Delhi is only 1.52 per cent of the total population of the country.

“Delhi’s per capita income is likely to increase to Rs 4,01,982 at current prices in the financial year 2021-22. In the year 2020-21, it was Rs 3,44,136. This shows an increase of 16.81 per cent in Delhi’s per capita income in 2021-22,” Sisodia said.

He said Delhi’s per capita income for the year 2021-22 is almost 2.7 times higher than the national average of Rs 1,49,848.

“The Revised Budget Estimate for the financial year 2021-22 is Rs 67,000 crore against the approved Budget Estimate of Rs 69,000 crore. The proposed Revised Estimates of Rs 67,000 crore is 27.70 per cent higher than the actual expenditure of Rs 52,468 crore in 2020-21,” the Delhi Deputy Chief Minister said.

“Prior to our Government came into power, the total expenditure of the Government of National Capital Territory of Delhi during 2014-15 was Rs 30,940 crore. I presented my first full budget in June 2015 with an estimated expenditure of Rs 41,129 crore,” he said.

“With immense pleasure, I am now proposing the budget of Rs 75,800 crore for the year 2022-23, which is about two and half times the expenditure of Rs 30,940 crore in the year 2014-15,” the Delhi Deputy Chief Minister said.

He said in Budget Estimates 2022-23 as compared to the year 2021-22, the capital budget has been increased by 29 per cent, while revenue expenditure has increased by only 4 per cent.

“Now I want to present the important section of our ‘Rozgar Budget’ containing 20 lakh new jobs. In this, I will put plans to take the economy of Delhi on the path of progress and generate lakhs of employment opportunities out of this progress,” the Delhi Deputy Chief Minister said.

“Under the leadership of Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, we are aiming to increase the percentage of the working population of Delhi from the current 33 per cent to 45 per cent in the next five years,” he said.

“That is, out of the total population of 1 crore 68 lakh people of Delhi, these 56 lakh people who do some employment at present, we will have to increase their number to 76 lakhs,” the Delhi Deputy Chief Minister said.

“Our Government has chosen Retail Sector, Food and beverages, Logistic and Supply Chain, Travel and Tourism, Entertainment, Construction, Real Estate and Green Energy sectors as a priority to create new jobs,” he said.

“We plan to redevelop and transform these iconic markets of Delhi into attractive tourist destinations.  For this, we propose Rs 100 crore in the budget. At least 1.5 lakh new job opportunities will be created in next 5 years from within just 5 markets,” Sisodia said.

He said every year ‘Delhi Shopping Festival’ will be organised to invite people of the country and the world to shop in Delhi and to experience it as a festival.

Sisodia said the Delhi Government plans to develop the market in Gandhinagar as a ‘Grand Garment Hub’ in the field of readymade garments textile. This program is expected to create more than 40,000 new employment opportunities in the next 5 years.