Delhi govt budget likely to be 'biggest so far', have provisions to promote patriotism, say sources

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New Delhi, Mar 5: The annual budget of the Delhi government is likely to be “the biggest so far” and have provisions to promote patriotism, sources said on Friday. The Budget Session of Delhi Assembly, scheduled to begin from March 8, will have no question hour. The budget for financial year 2021-22 will be tabled in the House on March 9, they said.

“The annual budget for 2021-22 is going to be the biggest in the history of Delhi government. It is also likely to have provisions to promote patriotism,” said a source in the government. The AAP dispensation had presented Rs 65,000 crore budget for 2020-2021 fiscal that was around 10 per cent more than that of 2019-20.

Sources said the budget is also expected to have some new announcements besides measures to speed up various projects and schemes delayed due to the coronavirus pandemic. “The government is likely to come up with announcements to celebrate the 75th Independence Day. The Kejriwal government is also likely to come up with its roadmap for Delhi by the time the country celebrates its 100th Independence Day,” sources said.

Later this month, the government is likely to launch a 75-week long celebrations leading up to platinum jubilee of India’s Independence, they said. BJP MLA and Leader of Opposition in Delhi Assembly Ramvir Singh Bidhuri alleged that the AAP government was “violating” rights of the legislators by not having question hour in the Budget Session.

“We have raised the matter with the Assembly Speaker and plan to meet the Lt Governor also to seek his intervention to restore question hour,” he said and alleged that the AAP government was s running away from its responsibility of answering the MLAs’ questions. “All MLAs, including those of the ruling party, require answers to questions that people of their constituency have from different departments. We have not been given time to give notice for questions this time,” Bidhuri claimed.

Sources said the question hour was shelved because the budget session was called with less than 15 days time available to inform the MLAs about it. “The members of the House need to file questions 12 days prior to tabling of the answer, which is not available this time,” they said. Bidhuri said, the MLAs are to be notified 15 days before calling of the session, but they were informed about the Budget session as late as Thursday, exactly four days before it begins.

The Leader of Opposition demanded that the government extends the session for a week to allow the MLAs get answers during the question hour. The budget session will conclude on March 16.