Heated discussion in House over budget 2026-27

Gairsain: Heated discussions were witnessed in the Uttarakhand assembly over the Rs 1.11 lakh crore budget, which is likely to be passed in the late hours of Friday. Till the filing of this report, the MLAs of both sides were presenting their views over the 2026-27 budget that was tabled in the House by CM Pushkar Singh Dhami on March 9.BJP MLA from Deoprayag Vinod Khandari termed the budget as progressive and "one that sets up the roadmap for Viksit Uttarakhand @2047". "The budget has several provisions which aim to take Uttarakhand on the path of development," he said.Kashipur MLA Trilok Singh Cheema was of the view that the budget has a good balance between fiscal discipline and development. "The GDP of the state is increasing at a very fast pace, the total budgetary outlay increased by 10%, while 40% of the budget is on capital expenditure, which is a good sign for overall growth of the state," he added.Congress Mangalur MLA Qazi Nizamuddin said that the budget has nothing but the use of acronyms to mislead the people. "Agriculture, which is the mainstay of the people of the state, is neglected completely and it is showing a negative growth rate in the Himalayan state," he added.Congress MLA from Vikram Singh Negi stated the burden of loan is increasing consistently on the state and 2% of the govt's spending is on repayment of the loan. He added, "The govt should inform people of the state about the total debt burden on the state and the per capita debt burden on each individual of the state."The Rs 1.11 lakh crore budget for 2026-27 is about 10% higher than the Rs 1.01 lakh crore outlay of 2024-25.The budget includes revenue expenditure of Rs 64,989 crore and capital expenditure of Rs 46,713 crore. The fiscal deficit is projected at Rs 12,579 crore, which is below 3% of the gross state domestic product (GSDP) and within the limits prescribed under the fiscal responsibility and budget management (FRBM) Act. The primary deficit is estimated at Rs 4,650 crore.Revenue receipts for 2026-27 are projected at Rs 67,525 crore, while capital receipts are estimated at Rs 43,617 crore. Of the total revenue, tax revenue is expected to contribute Rs 43,327 crore, while non-tax revenue is projected at Rs 24,198 crore. The govt estimated internal debt at Rs 27 crore, while loans and advances from the centre amount to Rs 42,590 crore, taking the state's public debt to over Rs 21,000 crore.The budget also earmarks Rs 1,027 crore for the Kumbh Mela, scheduled to begin on Jan 14, 2027. To strengthen infrastructure, Rs 2,501 crore was allocated to the public works department, Rs 1,401 crore to the urban development department, Rs 1,642 crore for rural development, and Rs 291 crore for housing.