With a hike of Rs.1658 crore over the current year, the union territory (UT) of Jammu and Kashmir has been allocated Rs.35581.44 core as part of the central government’s grants and loans assistance for the next fiscal in the union budget that was presented on Tuesday in the parliament by the finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman. Last year’s allocation for J&K was Rs.34704.46 crore.
The bulk of the funds, Rs 33,923 crore in the budget for Jammu and Kashmir is under central assistance.
However, the allocation for the UT of Ladakh has been allocated Rs.5958 crore without any hike over last year’s allocation.
Both UTs, J&K and Ladakh are currently under central rule after abrogation of the Article 370 on 5 August 2019 and splitting of J&K state into two UTs.
J&K has been allocated Rs. Rs 33923 crore to meet revenue deficit and resources gap; Rs 273 crore for rehabilitation of the Dal and Nageen lakes in Srinagar and Rs.279 crore as UT disaster response fund.
A sum of Rs.476.44 crore has been granted for equity contribution for the 800 mws Ratle hydroelectric project and Rs.130 crore has been allocated as contribution towards the 624 mws Kiru hydroelectric project.
Rs.500 crore support for capital expenditure of the UT.
Taking care of the higher education needs of the youth of Ladakh, the finance minister proposed to set up a university in Leh.
RK Mathur, Lt. Governor of Ladakh, expressing gratitude for budgetary allocation to Ladakh tweeted; “The Union Govt. has allocated Rs. 5958 Cr to Ladakh as a part of the #UnionBudget2022.
Gratitude to PM @Narendramodi, HM @AmitShah & FM @nsitharaman”. Meanwhile, the National Conference described the budget 2022-23 “a blend of sophistry, wordplay saying it has left stakeholders in Jammu and Kashmir excluded and ignored”.
Union budget 2022-23, NC spokesperson Imran Nabi Dar said, has stared clear of Jammu and Kashmir and left the issues confronting working classes, traders, horticulturalists, artisans, small businesses, MSMEs untended.
Imran said the budget has failed to enthuse all stakeholders as it was prepared with no public participation and consultation with the stakeholders in Jammu and Kashmir.
Terming the budget as “insignificant for the business community”, President Chamber for Commerce and Industry (CCI) Jammu, Arun Gupta said that the Finance Minister has nothing in offing for the small traders and industrialists.
In a statement, Arun Gupta said that over all everything is touched in the budget but with a big disappointment for the traders and industrialists who were confronting mounting pressure due to restrictions and continuous setbacks in the last over two years due to pandemic corona and its related problems.
He said what is missing in the budget is relief for marginal traders who were worst hit by the pandemic and expecting relief from the Modi Government in the form of significant sops or some other incentives.