New Delhi: Delhi's Finance Minister Kailash Gahlot on Wednesday presented the ninth Budget for the city government. The Cabinet approved the Delhi Budget 2023 during the session held in the assembly under the chairmanship of Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal. Here are the top 10 highlights from today's budget session:
- At the beginning of the budget, CM Kejriwal said Manish Sisodia, who is currently undergoing a legal trial, is being missed. "But we will not let his work stop. All the work started by him will be done at double the speed," the CM said. Finance Minister Kailash Gahlot also, remembering Sisodia, said, "I would have been happier if Manish Sisodia had presented the budget. He is my elder brother."
- The total layout of the Budget is Rs 75,800 crores with a focus on creating a clean, beautiful, and modern Delhi, Gahlot said. An amount of Rs 3,348 crore has been allocated to the power department in the annual budget this year. 25 percent of Delhi's annual electricity demand will be met by solar power by 2025 as compared to 9 percent at present, Gahlot announced.
- An allocation of Rs 6,342 crore has been set aside for water supply and sanitation, Finance Minister Kailash Gahlot said. Water availability in Delhi will be increased from 995 million gallons a day to 1,240 MGD by March 2025, he stated adding that the government plans to set up 1,000 RO plants in Jhuggi Jhopri (JJ) clusters, unauthorized colonies, and water-deficit areas.
- Gahlot further highlighted that 77,000 elderly pilgrims have benefited under the Delhi government's free pilgrimage scheme, which will continue during the present financial year as well. He further stated that the Kejriwal govt will train 2 lakh construction workers under Skill Development Programme in 2023-24. Four new schemes have been planned for their welfare, Gahlot announced.
- Free bus ride scheme for women will continue in 2023-24, the Finance Minister said, adding that Rs 9,333 crore have been allocated for Delhi's transport sector. The government has also planned to launch an app-based premium bus aggregator scheme, he said.
- Delhi government allocated Rs 9,742 crore for Health in 2023-24, a marginal decrease from Rs 9,769 crore last year. Keeping Delhites healthy and taking care of their minor and major ailments have been the focus of the Delhi government, Gahlot said.
- He further informed that the Delhi government plans to open 100 Mahila Mohalla Clinics after the initiative of four such clinics launched in 2022 was highly successful. Nine new hospitals are being built, and four of them will be operational this year, the hospital bed count will also increase from 14,000 to 30,000, he said.
- A budget allocation of Rs 16,575 crore has been earmarked for Delhi's education which is 20 percent of the total budgetary allocation, he said highlighting that the government's work in improving the city's education has found mention in New York Times, which is a big deal. Delhi's education system is world-class, such a feat has not been achieved by any government in the history of India, Gahlot said in his Budget speech.
- Mohalla Bus Scheme will be started in the coming financial year to ensure last-mile connectivity, for the first time in the history of Delhi, Gahlot said. Nine-meter mini-electric buses will ply these routes. 100 e-buses will be launched in 2023-24, and 180 in the next two years, Gahlot announced. The electrification of 57 existing bus depots, the construction of nine new bus depots, three Inter-state Bus Terminals (ISBTs), and two multi-level bus depots in Delhi.
- Gahlot also raised the issue of the Centre contributing less to Delhi. "Delhi has got only 325 crores from central taxes. There has been no change for the last 8 years. Delhi government contributes 1.75 lakh crore as income tax. Whereas, in 2023-24, the central government reduced its share in central taxes to zero. This shows the stepmotherly treatment of the Central government towards Delhi," the Finance Minister said.
