Bihar to spend more

[ 7 Mar, 2007 0209hrs ISTTIMES NEWS NETWORK ]


PATNA: For the first time in Bihar, the state will end up spending
more than its annual plan allocation for the current fiscal.

Deputy CM and state finance minister Sushil Kumar Modi, while replying
to the debate on the budget presented for the year 2007-08, informed
the state Assembly that the state was poised to cross the expenditure
of its state plan size of Rs 8,250 crore for the fiscal 2006-07.

"We aim at spending Rs 8,670 crore by the end of this fiscal," Modi
said amidst thumping of desks by NDA benches. The state has had a
track record of not being able to spend its plan funds in the past.
Modi, however, said the NDA government would not allow funds to lapse.

Modi's reply to the debate, which focussed on "15 years of RJD rule
versus 15 months of NDA rule", took a dig at the RJD benches for
'financial mismanagement' and for shedding crocodile tears for the
poor during its rule.

RJD, CPI, CPM and Congress MLAs staged a walkout.

Ridiculing opposition charges that the NDA government has been unable
to spend, Modi said till January this year, most of the major
departments had spent a major portion of the funds allocated to them.
"The cooperatives have spent 99 per cent of their funds, health 78 per
cent, medical education 70 per cent, human resources 61 per cent,
industry 98 per cent, REO 95 per cent and the primary education
department has spent 84 per cent," he added.

The deputy CM also gave the expenditures of state plan during
Lalu-Rabri regime. "Your expenditure from 1993 to 2005 ranged from Rs
750 crore to Rs 3,124 crore," he told the RJD bench and alleged the
RJD was interested only in keeping people poor and organising 'Gareeb'
rallies. He criticised the previous regime for not presenting a full
budget and always resorting to vote on account.

Modi promised the NDA's record on this count would improve in coming
years. "We have finally got contractors. Also, our engineers, who
during the RJD regime did not know how to prepare a detailed project
report, have now learnt to prepare DPR," he said.

Modi also refuted opposition criticism of reduction in sales taxes on
150 items. "We followed the rule of bringing taxes at par with
neighbouring states because if our taxes remain high, we cannot stop
tax evasion," he said, adding collection of commercial tax and excise
has increased. He also said the reversal of the previous regime's
decision on road tax hike has actually led to the revival of transport
industry. He quoted figures, indicating a 25 per cent rise in sales of
various vehicles in the state.
Modi also refuted the opposition charge that there was nothing for the
poor and farmers in the state budget. In this regard, he cited several
new schemes like uniforms for girl students, cycles to 1.87 lakh girl
students and policy for compensations to BPL families and migrant
labourers.

Modi said though NDA's 15-month regime does not claim to have
transformed Bihar into a heaven, the process of reopening closed units
has started.

Several MLAs, including Vinod Narayan Jha (BJP), Ram Das Rai (RJD),
Ram Dev Verma (CPM) and Lallan Paswan (JD-U), participated in the
four-hour-long debate.