Source: The Sangai Express
Imphal, December 10:
Lok Sabha today passed the Manipur budget for 2001-2002 with the Government announcing that the Assembly elections in the State would be held along with other States going to polls early next year.
�We are keen to hold elections in Manipur at the earliest along with other States and there is no need to extend the President�s rule further,� Minister of State for Finance Balasaheb Vikhe Patil said replying to a brief discussion on Manipur budget.
The Minister presented a deficit budget of the order of Rs 498.67 crore for the current fiscal.
The state plan outlay has been fixed at Rs 375.21 crore for the current year which is over and above a sum of Rs 520 crore allocated by the Planning Commission for the year.
Because of the uncertain political climate and subsequent imposition of President�s Rule, the state budget could not be passed at the ninth month of the current fiscal.
The brief debate saw members including Th Chaoba Singh (MSCP) and Raghuvansh Singh (RJD) underlying the need for a package for the state.
While most of the members including Mani Shankar Aiyar (Congress) wanted early elections, H Haokip (NCP) expressed himself against this saying such a move would be counter-productive as militants were still having upper hand.