Thursday, February 1, 2018
- Chandigarh, February 1--The Haryana Chief Minister, Mr Manohar Lal, has hailed the Union Budget for 2018-19, presented by the Union Finance Minister, Mr Arun Jaitley, in Parliament today, as unmistakably reflective of the pro-poor and pro-farmer policies of the NDA government that will prove to be a major milestone towards realising Prime Minister Mr Narender Modi’s vision of doubling the income of farmers, and by giving a decisive push to economic growth and job creation, will lay the foundation for a new India.
- Reacting to the Budget proposals here today, the Chief Minister said steeped in people’s welfare and well-being, these underscored the point that the NDA Government thinks and cares for the man in the street.
- Creation of 70 lakh new jobs in one year and bringing back standard deduction of up to Rs 40,000 will provide relief to the middle class. Exemption of tax on interest income up to Rs 50,000 on bank deposits will make senior citizens smile.
- The decision to raise the MSP of all crops to at least 1.5 times the production cost would incentivize farming operations and improve the economic lot of the farmers. The Rs 2,000-crore fund for developing agricultural markets will help the farmers in marketing their produce where they can get the maximum price, he added.
- Besides, adoption of cluster approach, allocation of Rs 500 crore for ‘Operation green,’ to promote processing facilities, state-of-the-art facilities in 42 mega food parks and Rs 1,000 crore for promotion of fisheries, together with focus on productive and gainful on-farm and non-farm employment for farmers and landless families, will further add to the income of the farmers, Mr Manohar Lal said.
- The Chief Minister also lauded the decision to provide eight crore free gas connections to women under the Ujjwala scheme, four crore electricity connections to the poor under Saubhagya Yojana and cover 10 crore poor and vulnerable families under the National Health Protection Scheme reflect the concern for the poor ingrained in the NDA philosophy.
- That the government will provide up to Rs 5 lakh per family per year for secondary and tertiary care hospital shows that it is progressing towards the goal of universal health coverage, he added.