Ranchi, February 1: Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren termed the Union Budget 2023-24 as filling coffers of the capitalists by cutting into the pockets of the poor.
In his reaction to the Union Budget 2023-24 presented today by Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in Delhi on Wednesday, Hemant Soren said, “I am an optimistic person but crores of tribals, Dalits, backward, farmers, youth, women and laborers had a great expectation from this year’s budget presented in the post-Covid pandemic period.”
“It was expected that special arrangements would be made regarding health, education, employment which were most affected during the Covid pandemic. We expected that the time would be extended for GST compensation but, contrary to expectation, the budget for MNREGA which is the lifeline of education and health in rural belt of India, has been reduced,” said Soren.
The Chief Minister said that the silence of the budget on the issues of jobs, employment, inflation etc. is disturbing and worrying.
“There has been no discussion on raising the minimum support price (MSP) on various agricultural products. I think they (the central government) have accepted that farmers’ income has doubled just by announcing them,” said Soren.
The Chief Minister said that Jharkhand state was trying to find out what has the Union Budget doled out for the tribal and backward state like Jharkhand.
“We are the ones who earn maximum profit for the country on the basis of per kilometer rail track, in such a situation, the scope of operation of passenger rail should have been increased, we should have got new rail lines, new trains. We understand clearly who will benefit from the airport era and the expensive air tickets,” said Soren.
The Chief Minister has said that only trivial lies has been left to support the middle class.
“What people lost and gained from the new tax policy of waiver on Rs Seven lakhs per annum salary will be understood later. This budget, which discourages savings, is also going to make the future of the poor and middle class insecure,” opined Soren.