When Jharkhand finance minister Rameshwar Oraon presents the annual budget on Wednesday, the second since Hemant Soren took over as the chief minister of the Grand Alliance government in December-end of 2019, he will surely find it difficult to please everybody.
Though a finance minister is not expected to discuss budget before it is tabled in the House, Oraon gave sufficient hints that it would be a people-friendly budget aimed at serving their larger interest, with no fresh tax imposed.
He also hinted that the budget would focus on creating jobs and providing relief to people who are already under financial strain due to rise of prices of essential commodities.
But the expectations of various quarters are so high that it would be really difficult for the present government to satisfy their demands.
A delegation of the Federation of Jharkhand Chamber of Commerce and Industries (FJCCI), the apex trade body of the state, had recently met both the chief minister and finance minister and suggested what it felt should be done for improvement in trade and commerce of the state.
They advised the government for establishing a textile park in Santhal Pargana, taking steps for reviving over 500 closed industrial units and promoting MSME sector and start-ups, besides creating proper infrastructure as required for the purpose.
“These are required for boosting the trade and industry in state,” said FJCCI president Praveen Jain Chabra, adding Santhal Pargana region badly needed attention for its proper development.
The ordinary people expect the state government should do its bit to reduce the cost of petrol, diesel and LPG cylinders that, in turn, also affects prices of essential commodities.
There were also many other organisations that felt initiatives should be made for overall development of the state.
Even social workers and activists also felt the state needed to do more to ensure that all the needy are benefited by welfare schemes.
The state chapter of Right to Food Campaign had been demanding for a long time that distribution of ration for the poor through the public distribution system should be universalised so that it covered all the poor and the needy.
Besides, another organisation, Gram Swaraj Majdoor Sangh, held a rally in Latehar district on February 26 and demanded that the amount of monthly pension to the old, widow, disabled and those belonging to particularly vulnerable tribal groups be raised from the existing Rs 1,000 to Rs 2,500 and paid regularly.
All these demands may be justified but the state needs resources for meeting those. It now remains to be seen how the budget plans to mobilise the required resources.
“The focus of the government during present budget session should be opening of avenues for providing jobs to the youths whose future would otherwise look bleak,” CPI(M-L) MLA Vinod Singh said while speaking to the media on the Assembly premises.
