Delhi govt presents ₹53,000 crore budget, Sisodia says it follows ‘trickle up’ economics

This is the first “Green budget” of the government for effective containment of pollution in the city, the deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia said in the budget session of the Assembly.

The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government on Thursday presented its ₹53,000 crore budget for 2018-19 in the assembly, which laid emphasis on environment, health, education and water.

Deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia on Wednesday presented the government’s report card by highlighting the targets met by 14 of its 34 departments for a period of nine months from April to December, 2017. (Raj K Raj/HT file photo)

Presenting the budget, deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia said the budget follows “trickle up” economics aiming to benefit poor and middle class people in Delhi.

“The budget estimates for 2018-19 are pegged at ₹53,000 crore which is 19.45% more than the revised budget estimates of ₹44,370 crore for the previous financial year,” Sisodia said.

This is the first “Green budget” of the government for effective containment of pollution in the city, the deputy chief minister said in the budget session of the Assembly.

“We are going to thread 26 programmes and schemes of transport, power, environment and PWD for devising a unified system of pollution control, bringing down levels of different pollutants,” he said.

The government has also proposed to set aside ₹1000 crore for repair and maintenance of smaller roads owned by the municipal corporations of the city, he said.