J&K’s budget for 2021-22 set to be unveiled in Parliament

Top officials of UT administration rush to New Delhi, marginal increase expected

Srinagar: Jammu & Kashmir Union Territory’s second budget is set to be presented in the Parliament in the next few days. Sources disclosed that J&K UT’s budget for next fiscal will be unveiled in the Lok Sabha likely this week. “Ahead of the budget, top officials of Finance department have rushed to New Delhi to remain present there when the budget will be unveiled in the Parliament,” they said, adding that Finance Commissioner, Finance department Arun Kumar Mehta, Director General, Budget, Muhammad Yaqoob Itoo, Deputy Director, Budget,Shafat Yehya and Deputy Director, Budget, Javeed Maqbool Khanday are in New Delhi. According to sources, there is likely to be a marginal increase in the budget for 2021-2022.“There is unlikely to be a massive jump in the budget because there was no increase of central grant for the UT in the Union Budget,” they said, adding that Rs 30757 crore were allocated to J&K in the budget. This will be the second time when the budget of J&K UT will be unveiled the Parliament. The ongoing fiscal’s budget was also presented in both Houses of the Parliament by the Central government last year. On March 17, 2020, Union Finance Minister unveiled Rs.1.01 lakh crore Budget for the UT for 2020-21 fiscal, making it the highest ever budget for the region. Of Rs. 1,01,428 crore, Rs 38,764 crore were earmarked for capital expenditure and Rs 62,664 crore for revenue expenditure.The budget is being presented in the Parliament as UT is currently without its Assembly and the Parliament exercises its law-making powers. Under the J&K Reorganisation Act, powers of the J&K Assembly will be exercised by the Parliament in absence of an elected government in the UT.