People's Democracy

 NO BUDGET FOR WEST BENGAL

Incompetence and

Callousness of the FM

THE West Bengal finance minister, Amit Mitra, has created a precedent in the country by not placing a full budget on the floor of the assembly. Instead of a budget what was presented was a statement of the finance minister, where he claimed that the revenue earnings of the state will be increased by 31 per cent in the current fiscal year. However, no tax proposal has been mentioned to meet this target, apart from an announcement by the finance minister that taxes will be raised on liquor and lottery. On the expenditure side, allocations have been increased for development planning, school education, health etc. There was no mention either of the sources for increased allocation. But what is shocking is that no extra allocation has been made for the departments of panchayat and rural development or irrigation. There was no transparency of revenue earning or spending.

Commenting on Amit Mitra’s annual financial statement, leader of the opposition Suryakanta Mishra pointed out that this would only nudge the state closer to a “financial mess” and prove to be an “embarrassment for the government.”    It was also pointed out by him that new proposals are being announced almost every day; but there is no indication as to where will the money come from? Moreover, it is being reported in newspapers that central government is providing grant-in-aid, Central Plan Assistance and Special Central Assistance. But this too finds no mention in the statement of the finance minister. The non-seriousness of the finance minister and the government is also evident from the fact that the minister couldn’t even circulate a copy of his speech. It was just a verbal statement.

The government of the day has a duty to place a budget before the house and the people. By not doing so, the Trinamool-led government has bypassed established democratic norms and procedures. It is, in fact, the arrogance of the new government that they are even refusing to submit a clear financial proposal in assembly.