Union Finance Minister, Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman, introduced the Budget of Jammu & Kashmir for 2024-25 in Parliament on 23rd July, 2024. The Appropriation Bill on the Regular Budget for 2024-25 will be considered by the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha in this regard.
Finance Department of the UT Government had drafted the Regular Budget for the current year. For this, the Department had assessed the revenue receipts of the UT Government from GST, motor spirit tax, excise, and stamp duty. Further, the non-tax revenue from electricity and water supply, mining royalty, timber sales, annual rent from industrial lands, etc were also examined. The own revenue of the UT Government has been estimated at Rs. 21,860crore.
A detailed analysis of the fiscal situation of Jammu and Kashmir was carried out by the Finance Department to address the legacy challenges which include high staff strength, low revenue base, and high debt load. The high fiscal stress caused by the committed nature of the major expenditures has increased the UT’s dependence on central grants. To address these challenges, the UT government has increased tax and non-tax revenues through improved GST return compliance, improved billing and collection efficiency, increased dealer registration, and transparent excise auctions.
All administrative departments also intensified efforts to harness central funds by enhancing execution speed. This led to a sharp increase in receipts of funds under centrally sponsored schemes.During the last financial year, the UT government also stringently enforced borrowing limits and curtailed the culture of overdraft. With close monitoring of public debt, the UT government was successful in tapering down the off-Budget borrowings. The government has restrained revenue expenditure through austerity measures and biometric verification of beneficiaries. The UT Government also pursued Government of India for increasing central financial assistance.
Lieutenant Governor Shri Manoj Sinha, Chief Secretary, Atal Dulloo and Principal Secretary Finance, Santosh Vaidya led the UT’s efforts in this direction. Crucial meetings were held in June and July 2024 in Ministry of Home Affairs and Ministry of Finance to review these demands of the UT Government. Union Home Minister and Union Finance Minister personally reviewed the fiscal management of the UT Government in recent months.
Considering the challenges faced and the strenuous efforts made by the UT government, Government of India has agreed to provide special financial support to Jammu and Kashmir coupled with reforms to come out of the fiscal stress. Accordingly, the Union Budget which was also laid before the Parliament provides for a special central assistance of Rs.17,000 crore for Jammu and Kashmir. The Union Government has agreed to provide for the salary, pension and other costs of Jammu and Kashmir Police for which an allocation of Rs 12,000 crore has been made in the annual budget. In addition, a lump sum special grant of Rs 5,000 crore as additional central assistance is being provided in the current financial year.
As a result of this Rs. 17,000 crore of special package, the fiscal deficit to GDP ratio of Jammu and Kashmir will reduce to 3.0% in the financial year 2024-25. This special package will be part of the overall central assistance which is estimated at Rs. 67,133 crore during 2024-25. This unprecedented assistance would lead to complete improvement in fiscal position enabling the Government of Jammu & Kashmir to work towards fulfilling the developmental needs and aspirations of the people, while maintaining stable fiscal health.
The budget of Jammu and Kashmir for 2024-25makes provisions for the ongoing initiatives for infrastructure development, sustainable agriculture, new industrial estate, PRI level works, employment generation, developing tourism, and social inclusion. During preparation of the interim budget proposals, consultations were held with all the Departments and various stakeholders to provide for ongoing initiatives and arrive at realistic budgetary numbers. For finalizing expenditure proposals, assessment of financing needs of infrastructure projects, social and economic measures undertaken by Departments was undertaken.
The budgetary exercise focused on the imperative of advancing the cause of the greater collective good within the realistically realizable resources.The budgetary estimate for this financial year 2024-25 is about Rs. 1,18,390crore, includingrevenue expenditure of Rs. 81,486 crore and capital expenditure of Rs. 36,904crore. The major outlays under the budget of Jammu and Kashmir for 2024-25 are as below -
Major Outlays under Budget 2024-25
. 9400 crore for subsidy and budgetary support for purchase of power from the National grid and the Power purchase agreements with power generation companies.
. 3983 crore for Construction of roads & bridges under PMGSY, CRIF, NABARD loan schemes& Bridge scheme.
. 1875 crore for rejuvenating school education infrastructure and services through funding of Samagra Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA), career counselling services, and setting up of modern schools for quality education with PM SHRI funding
. 1808 crore for strengthening decentralized governance by providing for local area development works of PRIs, ULBs, BDCs and DDCs.
. 1714 crore provisioned for tap-water connectivity for rural areas under Jal Jeevan Mission.
. 1484 crore for completion of Smart City projects in Srinagar and Jammu cities, construction of infrastructure projects under Jhelum Tawi Flood Recovery Project (JTFRP), construction of sewerage treatment plants in urban areas, and development of new townships for housing.
. 1430 crore for comprehensive social security coverage under assistance schemes for Old Age, Widow, and Disabled, and for the women empowerment interventions of Ladli Beti and Marriage Assistance schemes.
. 1317 crore for strengthening infrastructure and services in the health sector under National Health Mission mechanism.
. 1104 crore for construction of own houses of houseless poor families in rural areaswith PM Awas Yojana- Grameen support
. 1068 crore for Provision for salaries, food grains, cash assistance for Kashmiri migrants and construction of transit accommodation for Kashmiri migrant employees.
. 1021 crore for transforming agriculture and allied sectors of the UT through the Holistic Agriculture Development Programme (HADP), with the five-year outlay of Rs 5013 crore, including provisions for IFAD funded J&K Comprehensive Investment Plan (JKCIP) and development ofcold storage and high density plantation.
. 923 crore for development and upgradation of Industrial Estates, for providing GST refund incentive and incentives as per the Industrial Policy for industrial units, promotion of trade through JKTPO’s events for boosting investment and employment
. 776 crore for equity support for the hydro electric projects at Ratle, Kwar, and Kiru, which would provide stable revenue source and cheaper power.
. 586 crore for Universal health insurance coverage for all families of Jammu & Kashmir.
. 500 crore for providing of drugs, machinery and equipments for health institutions.
. 475 crore for upgradation infrastructure of colleges and universitiesand for rollout of the National Education Policy.
. 518 crore for promotion of Tourism, development of new tourism destinations and new circuits, construction of ropeways, conduct of Shri Amarnath Ji Yatra and film festival and promotion policy.
. 445 crore for improving sanitation and waste disposal facilities, IHHLs, CSCs & achieving ODF+ status in the rural areas.
. 390 crore for flood management projects of river Jhelum.1.Rs
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#IndiaFightsCorona
#JandKFightsCorona
#WeshallOvercome
#StayHomeStaySafe
#FightagainstCOVID

#COVIDkitDistribution

COVID kit to be distributed amongst all those testing COVID positive in J&K. Distribution begins from tomorrow, May 9, Sunday. COVID kit to consist of:
1) *Oxymeter*
2) *Medicine set*
a) Paracetamol
b) Cough / throat medicine
c) An antiviral like Ivermectin
d) An antibiotic
e) Zinc + vitamin (zincovit)

#LargestVaccineDrive
"While the registration for vaccination of eligibles persons in the age group 18-45 has been opened on COWIN, the actual vaccination will *not begin* from 1 May 2021. It will begin from a date to be announced later once the vaccine supply is established. Vaccination will not be a walk in but only through pre-registration of slots. No slots have been opened for booking a session. Please wait for the announcement of the vaccination start date for the 18-45 age group.

Lt Governor @manojsinha_ participated in 6th Governing Council meeting of #NITIAayog; highlighted major reforms made by the UT Government; made suggestions for giving further push to the developmental process in J&K. After 5 August 2019, J&K got new opportunities of socio-economic development that were not there for many decades. Jammu & Kashmir is passing through a period of transition for development, peace and prosperity: Lt Governor @manojsinha_

In order to promote the culture of entrepreneurship and innovation, J&K Entrepreneurship Dev. Inst. (JKEDI) and Higher Edu. Dept (HED) sign an MoU to lend expertise and evolve the ecosystem of entrepreneurship and startup envt. in the colleges of J&K. "JKEDI has pivotal role in entrepreneurship development of J&K", says Manoj Kumar Dwivedi, Commissioner Secretary, Industries and Commerce.

Taking a leap towards strengthening the vocational education ecosystem in J&K; the Lt Governor @manojsinha_ e-inaugurates 607 Vocational Labs under #SamagraShiksha; launches Vocational Education Portal and GIS Portal. Emphasis on #VocationalEducation, as per #NEP2020, is to enable students to be Job providers instead of Job Seekers. Important features of #NewEducationalPolicy have been initiated in J&K which will pave a strong foundation for #JobOrientedEducation for the youth: LG

Lt Governor @manojsinha_ attends closing ceremony of #NationalRoadSafetyMonth & FitnessMela; Launches 7 Online Services,e-inaugurates 19 ‘Learner’s License Test Centres’ for students at Polytechnics/ITIs across J&K;Flags off buses procured under #J&KTransportSubsidyScheme Lt Governor @manojsinha_ laid special emphasis on reaching out to youngsters & target groups by organizing programs of road safety awareness with people participation throughout the year; asks Transport Department to organize a UT level slogan competition on #RoadSafety

Lt Governor @manojsinha_ holds interaction with Foreign Envoys; says - “Years of suffering for J&K people ended on 5th August 2019. Efforts of Hon’ble PM ushered the UT in a new era of socio-economic development and empowerment of the people”. Central government headed by Hon'ble Prime Minister Narendra Modi has drawn up excellent ideas and initiatives of industrialization even in far flung areas of Union Territory so that more jobs could be created for our youth: LG @manojsinha_

Lt Governor @manojsinha_ hoists the National Flag at Union Territory level function at MA Stadium; greets people of J&K on the occasion of #72ndRepublicDay Lt Governor @manojsinha_ inspects the parade; took the salute at an impressive march past

Lt Governor @manojsinha_ leads #NationalVotersDay celebrations in J&K; administers #VotersDayPledge; inaugurates Nirvachan Bhavan; felicitates officers for their outstanding contribution in election process. Celebration of the Voters’ Day is a reminder to all the eligible voters about their responsibility to participate in the electoral process thereby strengthening the democratic framework, says the Lt Governor

"LG’s Mulaqaat-Live Public Grievance Hearing”-LG @manojsinha_ interacts with applicants through VC,issues onspot directions for disposal.Initiative to be institutionalized to lay thrust on objective disposal of grievances;assess performance of online Grievance Redressal System LG @manojsinha_ underscored that the ‘Jan Abhiyan’ in tandem with a robust & responsive grievance redressal mechanism can do wonders in formalizing a citizen-centric governance model centred on peoples’ welfare. #Transparency #Accountability #GoodGovernance

LG @manojsinha_ visits University of Kashmir; presides over the inaugural session of One Day National Seminar on "Reshi- Sufi Traditions of Kashmir" organised by Markaz-i Noor, Centre for Shaikh-ul Aalam Studies at Gandhi Bhawan
#LGinKU #Sufism
#ReshiSufiTraditionsOfKashmir LG stressed upon the need for revising the iconic role of Sufis&Reshis in the cultural transformation of Kashmir at an important juncture of its history.'There is a paramount scope for propagating&adhering to the legacy of Reshis&Sufis in the prevailing global&regional scenario.'

22Oct,1947 is #BlackDay; at the same time it is also the moment of history for us to make both the elderly & the younger generation aware that Pakistan did not only shed the blood of the people & Kashmiriyat,it tried to divide us, which we have failed with our unity & goodwill:LG 'We have decided to remind our new generations how this land,that preaches universal brotherhood,was trampled & bloodied by Pakistan,its army&govt on October22. It was their mission to plant the seed of communal hatred among peace-loving people':LG
#BlackDay #MemoriesOf22Oct1947

LG @manojsinha_ laid floral wreath at the Martyrs’ Memorial, Armed Police Complex, Zewan on #PoliceCommemorationDay.The commemoration parade is observed every year across the country on this day as a mark of respect to the martyrs, who laid down their lives in the line of duty. 'On this day, I bow to the great martyrs who fought till their last breath to protect the sovereignty&integrity of the country.Their supreme sacrifice will be eternally etched in the memory of J&K and the nation. We salute our immortal heroes and their unparalleled courage’: LG