JAIPUR: With an eye on the state elections next year, Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot on Wednesday announced a slew of people-friendly proposals in the Budget for 2022-23. The CM went a step further by presenting the first-ever agriculture Budget in a bid to win the support of farmers.
From proposing the reintroduction of the old pension scheme for government officials, to reducing power rates, which are one of the highest in the country, and increasing the insurance cover for Chiranjeevi scheme from the existing Rs 5 lakh to Rs 10 lakh from, Gehlot reached out to all segments of the population, including women who will receive 1.3 crore smart phones to work from home.
There will be relief on power tariffs for 1.18 crore domestic consumers which will cost the exchequer Rs 4,500 crore.
While it seems like a sweep of populism, the industry too did not have anything to complain about.
Going all out in a record Budget speech of three hours, the CM accepted the long-standing demand of the hospitality industry and proposed the extension of benefits to the sector roiled by the pandemic.
The agriculture Budget built on 11 missions under the Mukhyamantri Krishak Saathi Yojana to galvanise the sector saw allocations rise from the earlier Rs 2,000 crore to Rs 5,000 crore.
Speaking to the media on the old pension scheme after the presentation, Gehlot said, "Other states should also take a cue from the announcement. If an employee gives 30-35 years of his service to the government, he should get security for his/her old age. In 2004, the then government might have taken the decision for some strong reasons, but now we need to think of it again."
No SGST for rural tourism units for 10 yrs
He said all the employees appointed after January 1, 2004 and after would also get the benefit of the old pension scheme.
Keeping up with his image as a welfare leader, Gehlot proposed to expand the free healthcare services to OPD, IPD patients and critical illnesses, invest Rs 1,224 crore in 15 more medical colleges and set up new institutions for neuroscience and nursing.
The thrust was also visible in the education sector as the Budget proposed to upgrade 3,820 secondary schools to senior level and set up 2,000 Mahatma Gandhi English Medium schools in urban and rural areas in equal share.
Strategic educational institutes like the residential para sports academy in Jaipur and Jodhpur, an education hub at JLN Marg in the city and a sports training and rehabilitation centre in Jodhpur have been proposed along with an engineering college at the Khaitan Polytechnic campus at Rs 100 crore in Jaipur.
Recognising the severe stress faced by the industry due to the Covid pandemic, the CM, who also holds the finance portfolio, levied no new taxes. He extended relief of about Rs 900 crore to bring down stamp duty on multiple transactions. Under the MSME Act, industrial units have been exempted from prior approvals for three years and the relief extended to five years.
The tourism sector was a major gainer from the Budget as the government announced a Rs 1,000-crore fund, while exempting rural tourism units from SGST for 10 years and scrapping land conversion charges for tourism units in rural areas.
Gehlot did not disappoint the real estate sector as he proposed to extend stamp duty relaxation of 2% on transactions up to Rs 50 lakh and reduce DLC rate to 5% annually instead of the existing 10%. A Rs 100-crore housing fund for the economically weaker section (EWS) was also a positive for the sector.
