West Bengal government presents vote-on-account of Rs 57,905 cr

The state government on Friday presented a vote-on-account for Rs 57,905 crore in the West Bengal Assembly for its expenditure in the next four months. 

The vote-on-account saw a 16.96 per cent hike in the planned expenditure than the previous year. 

Before presenting the vote-on-account, state Finance Minister Amit Mitra read out the success of state government in implementing various projects for an overall development despite the Centre had reduced their funding in certain projects.

Stating that the growth rate of Bengal is 12.02 per cent in 2015-16, Mitra said the state government has increase the expenditure in almost all sectors in the past five years compared to that of in 2007 to 2011 during the erstwhile Left Front government. 

He said in the Assembly that the growth rate in agriculture and industry in 2015-16 was 5.5 per cent and 10.5 per cent respectively. 

Moreover, the capital expenditure had gone up 6 times and the planned expenditure has increased 3 times. 

In agriculture sector the state government has received the Centre’s Krishi Karman Purashkar for the 4 consecutive years. 

Till March 2011, 26 lakh Kishan credit cards were issued while in the past five years 69 cards were distributed. At the same time 128 Krishak Bazars have been constructed. 

The state government had distributed 174 lakh chickens and ducks in 2011-16 compared to that of 74 lakh in the period of five years from 2007. 

Around 810 water bodies including ponds and lakes were developed in the past five years to being a change in the fisheries sector in the state. 

The state had not lagged behind in increasing the storage capacity of food grains. Space for storage of 5 lakh metric tonne food grains has been created after the change of guard in the state. 

The state government’s expenditure to provide food grains to people at a much subsidised rate was Rs 6500 crore which was around 516 crore in 2007-11. 

Around 8 crore people are now getting rice and wheat at a rate of Rs 2 per kg under Khadya Sathi Prakalpa.

He said Biswa Bangla brand has been created to promote handloom and handicraft products manufactured by the people of the state. Steps were also taken for human resources development. 

For skill development an amount of Rs 1835 crore had been allotted and 84 lakh minority students had received scholarships. 

There will more than 170 it is by August while till 2011 there were only 80 it is in the state. 

He said over 11,000 km roads have been constructed under the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana. 

At the same time the construction work of 8 Information technology parks have already been completed and the work for eight more will be completed soon. 

At present 100 per cent students get midday meal compared to that of 65 per cent in the last five years of the Left Front government. 

The state government took necessary steps to bring up 5,851 new high schools in the past 5 years. While only 500 high schools had come up in between 2006-11. 

The budgetary allocation in health sector has also been increased. 

To improve the health care system for children, 308 SNSUs and 48 SNCUs in different hospitals have been set up in the past four years.