Chief Minister of Chhattisgarh Bhupesh Baghel News agency ANI reported that on Wednesday, a briefcase made of cow dung was taken to present the state budget. CM Baghel was photographed carrying the briefcase to the state assembly, where he presented the budget for the financial year 2022-23.
The briefcase was built over a period of 10 days at the Gauthan or cattle shed complex in Raipur. Various ingredients like cow dung powder, gum and flour were used to make this unique bag. It was inscribed in Sanskrit “Gomay Vasate Lakshmi”, which translates as “Lakshmi, the goddess of wealth resides in cow dung”.
State Finance Minister CM Baghel proposed to restore the old pension scheme for government employees. 2 crore was allocated in the budget for Chhattisgarh Employment Mission to “work on the possibilities of new employment generation in coordination with skill development programmes”.
The Congress government announced that local students would be exempted from paying fees for state exams like PCC and Vyapam.
In this budget, I propose to reinstate the old pension scheme for government employees. 2 crore proposed for Chhattisgarh Employment Mission to work on the possibilities of employment generation in coordination with skill development programmes: Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel pic.twitter.com/hEi7FiSVg4— ANI (@ANI) 9 March 2022
Around 16 per cent expenditure has been allocated for school education in the budget, of which most of the amount will be spent on building new school infrastructure. Atmanand Schools have also been proposed with the aim of providing quality education to the students from economically and socially weaker sections.
A new cadre named District Strike Force will also be formed to provide benefits of allowances and promotions to assistant constables in Bastar division.
Talking about health and infrastructure, Baghel said, “Rs 150 crore has been allocated in the budget regarding the construction of roads to connect schools, health centers and Anganwadi centers with pucca roads.”
For the agriculture sector, the annual assistance to farmers under the Rajiv Gandhi Bhoomiheen Krishi Mazdoor Nyay Yojana has been increased from Rs 6,000 to Rs 7000 from next year. As per the budget announcement, more than 30,000 hectares of non-forest land in Bastar has been identified as revenue land.
After the budget speech, Baghel told reporters that Chhattisgarh has been successful in lifting 1.72 lakh children out of malnutrition, and the state’s malnutrition rate is now lower than the national average. Malnutrition rate has come down by 8.7 percent under various nutrition schemes. It is 31.3 percent in the state which is 0.85 percent less than the national average.
Soon after presenting the budget, Baghel shared the highlights of the finance document on Twitter and called it “NYAY” or the budget of justice.
I am sharing important announcements of Chhattisgarh Budget 2022-23 with all of you. 1/5 #CGBudgetForNYAY pic.twitter.com/e0T8JvPYJp— Bhupesh Baghel (@bhupeshbaghel) 9 March 2022
This was the fourth budget of the Bhupesh Baghel-led Congress government in Chhattisgarh. Baghel will contest again when elections are held in the state next year.
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