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Accent on thrift, U.P. govt begins preparations for budget 2023-2024
Keeping in view 2024 Lok Sabha elections, the state government will have to strike a balance between curtailing expenditure and incorporating populist schemes ahead of the polls
The Uttar Pradesh government has asked its departments to take a look at measures for thrift as it begins preparations for the annual budget for 2023-2024. It has asked departments to submit their proposals to the state finance department by November 30, which would be incorporated in the next budget.
“Wasteful expenditure should be checked and unproductive expenditure should be minimised. The state government’s orders for thrift measures should be specially taken care of in this regard,” said additional chief secretary, finance, Prashant Trivedi, in a circular dated September 30, sent to all additional chief secretaries, principal secretaries and secretaries.
“The state government’s budget is a policy document giving shape to the state. Finalising the budgetary proposals is a top management function and the additional chief secretaries, principal secretaries and secretaries should examine the budgetary proposals by holding meetings at their levels before sending them to the state finance department,” said Trivedi.
As all eyes will be set on the annual budget for 2023-2024, keeping in view 2024 Lok Sabha elections, the state government will have to strike a balance between curtailing expenditure and incorporating populist schemes ahead of the polls. The annual budget is likely to incorporate measures to help the state achieve the objective of becoming a trillion-dollar economy.
“The General Election due in 2024 will cast a long shadow on the state government’s forthcoming budget for the year 2023-24. Given the political heft of UP in Parliament, chief minister Yogi Adityanath is endeavouring to present UP as a model state of India, especially in the area of development. By the time of the budget, hopefully, the state government will also have the benefit of having the road map ready for a trillion-dollar economy by the year 2027. The budget is likely to give a prominent place to this objective. It will further emphasise development with welfare,” said Professor Yashvir Tyagi, former head of department economics, Lucknow University.
Trivedi’s circular incorporates general directives that include directives about making no token provisions. For new items to be incorporated in the state budget, it has asked departments to include externally aided projects, centrally sponsored schemes and resource-linked projects. Instead of creating new posts for new schemes, the departments should suggest alternative proposals, the circular reads. Barring special circumstances no proposals for construction of new residential and non-residential buildings will be considered, it informs departments.
It also tells departments that under the model budget revenue, expenditure should be met by revenue receipts. It asks them to scrap schemes that may not be useful and review administrative structure in view of increasing expenditure on staff. It has asked departments to review the cost of collection of revenue and take appropriate action if the cost of collection was less in comparison to the expenditure on staff deployed.
A review of the expenditure on delivery system and supervision has also been suggested. The departments have been asked to get work done on contractual basis instead of doing so by appointment of contractual staff. The departments have been asked to propose new construction projects only when appropriate allocations have been made for existing projects.
About buying new vehicles, it tells departments not to directly include any such proposals, and wherever necessary, the vehicles should be arranged on a contract basis with prior permission of the state government. If any proposal is incorporated in the budget for buying new vehicles, it would be included under the capital expenditure head, the circular reads.
