The Hindu Business Line : Central assistance to State Plans up Rs 7,000 cr

Assistance for Centrally-sponsored drinking water programme has seen a sharp drop of 66.7 per cent to Rs 1,415.17 crore, from the Budget Estimate of Rs 4,250 crore in 2008-09.

Our Bureau

Bangalore, July 8 The Budget allocations towards agriculture and social sector programmes implemented in States are such as to benefit irrigation, urban infrastructure and urban slums, but not drinking water, school education and renewable energy.

The performance of flagship irrigation and urban development schemes in 2008-09 was encouraging, with the Revised Estimates being way ahead of the budgeted sum. It is perhaps in view of this performance that their allocations have been hiked in the Budget.

Towards Central schemes

The Budget allocation towards Central and Centrally sponsored schemes has been slashed by over Rs 3,000 crore to Rs 22,136 crore, while Central assistance to State Plans has increased by about Rs 7,000 crore to Rs 81,256 crore. The sectors that will be hit as a result of the cutback in Centrally-sponsored schemes include health and family welfare, school education and literacy, drinking water supply, animal husbandry, dairying and fisheries and agriculture and cooperation.

The hike in Central outlay for State Plan projects will work to the benefit of schemes under the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM), Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana and the Accelerated Irrigation Benefit Programme.

Assistance for Centrally-sponsored drinking water programmes has seen a sharp drop of 66.7 per cent to Rs 1,415.17 crore, from the Budget Estimate of Rs 4,250 crore in 2008-09. The Revised Estimate for 2008-09 was Rs 4,240 crore. Allocation for school education and literacy has also dipped 48.4 per cent over the Budget Estimate of 2008-09 to Rs 1,702.56 crore for 2009-10. However, higher education saw an increase of 171.8 per cent, from Rs 147 crore (2008-09 BE) to Rs 400 crore. Surprisingly, allocation for Centrally-sponsored schemes for new and renewable energy has come down by about Rs 4 crore to Rs 11.75 crore.

The AIBP and other water resource programmes under the State Plan has been allocated a grant of Rs 9,700 crore in the Budget, compared with Rs 5,550 crore (2008-09 BE). This is perhaps in view of the fact that the actual grants released for AIBP in 2008-09 amounted to Rs 7,850 crore.

Schemes under JNNURM

The JNNURM has seen an increase in grants from Rs 6,248 crore (2008-09 BE) to Rs 11,618 crore. The revised sum released as grants in 2008-09 was Rs 10,447.98 crore.

Under JNNURM, the allocation for the sub-mission on urban infrastructure and governance rose by 65.1 per cent, from the 2008-09 Budget Estimate of Rs 3,100 crore to Rs 5,117 crore. The Revised Estimate under this head amounted to Rs 4,400 crore.

The sub-mission on basic services to urban poor saw an increase of 31 per cent in grants over 2008-09 BE to Rs 2,169 crore.

The integrated housing and slum development scheme, under JNNURM, saw grants increase by 81.4 per cent to Rs 1,109 crore over 2008-09 BE. This is marginally lower than the Revised Estimate of Rs 1.111 crore in 2008-09.

Allocation for urban infrastructure development for small and medium towns increased to Rs 3,073 crore from Rs 879.69 crore (2008-09 BE). However, the Revised Estimate were Rs 3,280 crore. Interestingly, the allocation for the national e-governance action plan has not seen an increase in grants. These remained unchanged at Rs 469 crore.

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