Kolkata/New Delhi: State Finance Minister (Independent Charge) of West Bengal Chandrima Bhattacharya on Wednesday presented a budget of Rs 3.39 lakh crore for 2023-24. The biggest gain of the West Bengal budget though was the announcement of a 3 per cent hike in Dearness Allowance (DA) and extension of stamp duty exemption till 30 September 2023 by the West Bengal government.
FM Bhattacharya said that DA for Bengal state government employees and retirees will be increased by 3 percent from March.
Among other major announcements by the CM Mamata Banerjee-led Bengal government was the allocation of a Rs 350 crore startup fund to extend up to Rs 5 lakh each to young entrepreneurs.
The FM said that in the financial year 2022-23, the SGDP of Bengal is estimated to grow by 8.4 percent, industry by 7.8 percent. He also said that agricultural income tax on tea gardens would be waived off for 2023-24 and 2024-25. To boost last mile connectivity, FM Bhattacharya announced that 12,500 km of rural roads would be constructed at a cost of Rs 3,000 crore.