Budget hiked by just Rs 4 Cr
Source: The Sangai Express
Imphal, July 28 2017:
The annual budget for the current fiscal year has been hiked by Rs four crore from the annual budget of last fiscal 2016-17 .
This was stated by Deputy Chief Minister and Finance Minister Y Joykumar while discussing a demand for Finance in the State Assembly today .
Joykumar said that the annual budget could not be hiked much as there was a deficit of Rs 877.20 crore in the opening account of this fiscal year .
Nonetheless, the State Government would make all efforts to obtain additional funds by submitting revised estimates, he said .
As the previous Government recruited a large number of employees apart from regularising considerable number of existing employees, the State Government would be spending more funds on paying salaries .
Non-submission of utilisation certificates to the Central Government and failure to transform AC Bill into DCC Bill are two other factors for the inability to hike the annual State budget, Joykumar said .
The State Government has set a target of enhancing resource mobilisation as well as collection of taxes .
The State Government is expecting to collect Rs 36 crore as forest tax this fiscal year.
Forest tax of Rs 9 crore has been already collected in the first quarter of the current fiscal year .
Likewise, the State Government has been expecting enhanced land revenue .
The Government has been considering to export local liquor in order to generate more revenue .
Moreover, the Government has been working to woo investors to the State, Joykumar added.