Punjab Budget: No new taxes, silent on Rs 1,000 for women

Chandigarh, March 5 (IANS) Punjab Finance Minister Harpal Cheema on Tuesday presented the budget proposals of Rs 2,04,918 crore with no new taxes.

The emphasis of the budget was on education, health, sports and infrastructure, but was silent on its poll promise of Rs 1,000 for women above 18 years of age owing to the dire fiscal health of the state.

This is the third budget of the Aam Aadmi Party government in the state.

Minister Cheema said no new taxes have been imposed by the government which hopes to have a total revenue receipts of Rs 1,03,936 crore in 2024-25, of which own tax revenue will account for Rs 58,900 crore.

The state will also get Rs 22,041 crore as its share from central taxes and Rs 11,748 crore as Grants in Aid from Centre.

Ahead of the budget session, Leader of Opposition and Congress MLA Partap Singh Bajwa and state party chief Amarinder Singh Raja Warring slammed Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann for his unruly behaviour inside the Assembly a day earlier.

MLA Bajwa along with other Congress MLAs staged a dharna at the entrance to the Vidhan Sabha here against the remarks passed by the CM at Dalit MLA Sukhwinder Kotli.