Lok Sabha okays Rs 1.18 lakh cr Budget for Jammu & Kashmir

NEW DELHI: The Lok Sabha has passed the Rs 1.18 lakh crore Budget of the Union Territory of Jammu & Kashmir for 2023-24 and the Supplementary Demands for Grants for Jammu & Kashmir for 2022-23, amid the din created by the opposition members demanding constitution of a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) on the Adani issue.

The Rs 1.18 lakh crore Budget will have a revenue expenditure of Rs 77,009 crore and capital expenditure of Rs 41,491 crore. The House on Tuesday also passed Jammu & Kashmir Appropriation (No 2) Bill 2023 and the Jammu & Kashmir Appropriation Bill 2023 with voice votes.

The Budget of UT Jammu & Kashmir 2023-24 was introduced in Lok Sabha on March 13 by Minister of State for Finance Pankaj Choudhary.

"The Budget 2023-24 for Jammu & Kashmir shall again cross Rs 1 lakh crore mark, an indicator of our commitment to make Jammu & Kashmir a model of development," Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said in a written speech that was tabled on March 13.

"The economy is on the right track and the government is focusing on equitable growth in all the sectors of the economy. The economy is expected to grow at 10 per cent and there has been significant growth in collections under GST (goods and services tax), excise and stamp duty," she said.

The Centre is looking at the full implementation of Gati Shakti project in the state and key roads to be developed as part of G20 summit meetings and road to every village.

The state has also bagged the highest-ever investment of Rs 1,547.87 crore in the last 10 months. In the last three years, 500 startups have come up in the state. Another important item listed in the Budget was the Elevated Light Metro Rail. It will come up in the cities of Jammu and Srinagar.