Front Page

Major portion of Central plan for social sector

NEW DELHI: The budget has proposed the annual plan outlay for the next fiscal at Rs. 3.75 lakh crore with the social sector getting over Rs. 1 lakh crore of this outlay. The plan was pegged at Rs. 3.20 lakh crore but the government could spend only 2.92 lakh crore in revised estimates for the current fiscal.

An analysis of the Central plan outlay for important sectors indicates that after social services, energy and transport vie for the second slot. Though energy continued to occupy the second position, the gap with transport has widened considerably.

The budgetary support for the Central plan outlay has been fixed at Rs 1.80 lakh crores, up from Rs 1.49 crores in the revised estimates. The internal and external budgetary resources target for the next fiscal has been raised to Rs 2 lakh crores from Rs 1.44 lakh crore. The central plan outlay for the current fiscal, will fall short of the budget estimates by around Rs 28,000 crore.

During the next fiscal, energy will get about Rs. 94,000 crore as against the budgetary estimates of the current fiscal at Rs. 79,000 crore and actual spending of Rs. 72,000 crore. Substantially higher investments (about Rs. 14,000 crore) than this year have been planned for the power and petroleum segments.

The allocation for transport has been increased to Rs. 84,000 crore as against Rs. 69,000 crore spent this year and an allocation of Rs. 71,500 crores. Higher outlays have been provided to the railways, roads and bridges while there has been some cutback for the civil aviation sector due to allocation of some activities to the private sector. Ports and lighthouses also receive a higher outlay. In the head of industry and minerals, the allocation has gone up substantially from this fiscal’s revised estimates of Rs. 20,434 crores to over Rs. 28,000 crores during 2008-09. Iron & steel and petrochemical industries account for the bulk of the increased outlay. The increased outlay is for building up capacities and modernising existing plants. Rural development has also received more, mainly on account of stepped up allocations for rural employment and other special programmes.

Among the ministries, the rural development ministry has been allocated the maximum of Rs. 49,400 crore from this fiscal’s proposed allocation of Rs 42,000 crore.

In the communications sector, postal services will see a much higher outlay. Besides spending on introducing information technology in every sector of the postal services, Rs. 80 crore has been allocated for “payment of wages under the National Rural Employment Scheme” — the first time this provision has been made.

Science, technology, environment, atomic energy, space and other scientific research fields will get higher amounts.

Under the head of social services — which gets the highest Central Plan outlay — general and technical education will witness substantially high outlays. Medical and public health, water supply and sanitation, housing, welfare of the socially marginalised and social security and welfare heads will get increased amounts.

Text of Finance Minister's speech

Union Budget - Photo Gallery

© Copyright 2000 - 2009 The Hindu