With an eye on polls, the finance minister has spared no effort to give a thrust to the social sector, including health and education. While several new programmes have been launched, particularly in the health sector, allocations under some of the already-existing schemes too have increased sharply. The total budgetary allocation for 2008-09 to the health sector has been increased 15% to Rs 16,534 crore.
And the senior citizens have a reason to smile. A national programme for the elderly with a plan outlay of Rs 400 crore will be started in 2008-09. Along with other measures, two national institutes for ageing, eight regional centres and a department of geriatric medical care in one medical college of each state will be established during the current Five-Year Plan.
The unorganised sector also finds a special mention. The Rashtriya Swasthya Bima Yojana aims to provide health cover of Rs 30,000 for every below poverty line worker and his family in the unorganised sector. The scheme will first be launched in Delhi, Haryana and Rajasthan on April 1, with other states following suit. The Centre will contribute Rs 205 crore as its premium share in 2008-09.
The government has already provided Rs 1,500 crore to LIC under the Aam Aadmi Bima Yojana, under which LIC will provide cover to at least 1 crore landless farmers by September 30. A provision of another Rs 1,000 crore will be made to LIC to cover additional one crore landless worker under the scheme.
Allocation for the National Rural Health Mission (NRHM) has also been hiked to Rs 12,050 crore, under which the government envisages upgrade of 323 district hospitals apart from training 462,000 associated social health activists. The health mission will also work for better sanitation facility and will have functional committees in 177,924 villages for the purpose.
In the wake of fresh cases of polio being reported from the country?s two most populous states?Uttar Pradesh and Bihar?the government has also woken up to the challenge. A total allocation of Rs 1,042 crore has been made for this purpose during 2008-09.
?Apart from launching new schemes, the decision to cut excise duty to 8% from current 16% on all goods in the pharmaceutical sector is big a positive and thereby a boost for the entire health sector,? said Hitesh Gajaria, sector head pharmaceutical, KPMG.
Meanwhile, it is the primary and secondary education that has got maximum allocation: Rs 27,850 crore has been provided for school education as compared to Rs 23,191.35 crore during 2007-08. While primary education has been allocated Rs 19,777.50 crore, the balance went to secondary education.
However, experts are not satisfied with the token increase. ?In case of elementary education, there is hardly any increase. An increase of roughly Rs 2,000 crore in case of secondary education in this Budget too is very little. It shows that even with higher tax receipts, the government is not yet ready to pass on the benefits to the education sector,? said Jayati Ghosh, JNU professor and member of the National Knowledge Commission.
Among Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA) and the Mid-Day Meal Scheme, the former walked away with a bigger pie?a whopping Rs 13,100 crore. Rs 8,000 crore has been earmarked for the Mid-day Meal Scheme, which will be extended to all children up to the upper primary level (class I to VIII) across the country.
The government also announced setting up of 6,000 model high-quality schools and has made a provision of Rs 582 crore for this purpose. Allocation for secondary education too has been increased to Rs 4,554 crore during 2008-09 compared to Rs 2,465.18 crore during 2007-08.
