Crop loan interest waiver, no new taxes: Haryana CM Manohar Lal Khattar’s poll year sops

Geetanjali Gayatri & Vijay C Roy

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, February 23

With an eye on the Assembly polls slated later this year, Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar, who also holds the finance portfolio, presented a populist, ‘please-all’ Budget, levying no fresh taxes while offering a plethora of sops for every section of the society.

Focussing on welfare schemes and rural development, the CM presented the Budget for financial year 2024-25 with an allocation of Rs 1,89,876.61 crore. This is an increase of 11.37% over revised estimates of Rs 1,70,490.84 crore (2023-24). This includes Rs 1,34,456.36 crore as revenue expenditure and Rs 55,420.25 crore as capital expenditure — 70.81% and 29.19% of the total Budget, respectively. The debt of the state is likely to swell to nearly Rs 3.18 lakh crore in the next fiscal, but it continues to remain well within the prescribed limits. The CM later said the state had maintained “discipline” in its borrowings, which indicated a “healthy economy”. The state economy is likely to grow at 8%, against the national growth rate of 7.3%. Presenting the last Budget of his current tenure, Khattar had something to offer to everyone — free bus rides for the poor families, interest waiver for farmers, extending the state pension scheme to EPF employee, increase in pension to freedom fighters, hike in ex gratia for soldiers and financially empowering women.

The CM announced a waiver of interest and penalties on farmers for crop loan availed through Primary Agriculture Credit Society till September 30, 2023, to the tune of Rs 1,739 crore, while dropping levy of charges (abiana) on canal water and providing relief to farmers of 4,299 villages.

Khattar announced supply of excess water during monsoon season to water-scarce districts of Bhiwani, Charkhi Dadri and Hisar and said pipelines would be laid to carry water to Rajasthan, evoking protests from the Congress.

Two projects have been planned to solve the water problem of Mewat region. These include re-modelling of Gurugram water supply channel and Mewat feeder pipeline project.

The CM announced amendment to the Old Age Samman Allowance Scheme to extend the benefit to EPF pensioners by providing the balance amount in case it is less than Rs 3,000 per month.

The CM further announced the Haryana Antyodaya Parivar Parivahan Yojana (HAPPY) to benefit poor families to avail free travel, up to a 1,000 km every year in Haryana Roadways buses. Announcing the concept of “Drone Didi” and “Lakhpati Didi”, the CM proposed training in drone operations and increasing earnings of 2 lakh women through self-help groups.

Freedom fighters’ monthly allowance will be increased from Rs 25,000 to Rs 40,000, while the financial compensation for families of soldiers who die in the line of duty has been increased from Rs 50 lakh to Rs 1 crore.

The Mukhyamantri Gramin Awas Yojana has been launched to give possession of land or Rs 1 lakh to those yet to get plots under the Mahatma Gandhi Gramin Basti Yojana.