CM Siddaramaiah showcases ‘guarantee schemes’, targets Centre

Bengaluru: With the Lok Sabha polls round the corner, Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, presenting the state Budget on Friday, strongly defended his government’s guarantee schemes, asserting that they are not an “election gimmick”, and flayed the central government for its “anti people” decisions.

In his record 15th budget speech as finance minister and second under the present Congress regime, Siddaramaiah proposed to revise the tax slabs for Indian Made Liquor (IML) and beer, in order to rationalise them and make them competitive with similar products of neighbouring states.

The total outlay of the budget for 2024-25 is pegged at Rs 3,71,383 crore, with borrowings this year crossing the Rs one lakh crore mark.

Siddaramaiah said though he has presented a revenue deficit Budget (with deficit pegged at Rs 27,354 crore), he has increased the budgetary allocation for welfare programmes to Rs 1,20,373 Crore.

‘Further I have successfully ensured fiscal consolidation by keeping the fiscal deficit within 3 per cent of GSDP and total outstanding liabilities within 25 per cent of GSDP,’ he said, as he also expressed confidence in achieving revenue surplus after the next two years. The budget presentation was interrupted by sloganeering and a walkout by members of the Opposition, as Siddaramaiah came down heavily on the BJP government at the Centre.

Claiming that his government is marching ahead towards setting a new example of ‘Karnataka Model of Development’ founded on the principles of justice, equality and fraternity enshrined in our Constitution, he said, the “anti-people decisions” of the central government for the last 10 years has led to alarming developments such as widening inequality, concentration of wealth in a few hands and crony capitalism.

‘Therefore our state government has undertaken the work left undone by the central government which has abdicated its responsibility. Our guarantee schemes are not just an election gimmick. They are the result of the feedback obtained during ‘Bharat Jodo Yatra’, he further said.