Maharashtra Budget 2025 Highlights: Ajit Pawar proposes third airport in Mumbai, Navi Mumbai to get ‘Innovation City’

Due to a fiscal deficit of around ₹2 lakh crore and populist pre-election spending, the state’s financial situation has worsened. As a result, only 70% of the planned expenditure will be incurred, with a 30% cut in spending.

The ruling Mahayuti alliance has a lot of promises to keep. According to news agency ANI, people have high hopes from the state Budget which will be presented by Pawar during today’s Budget Session. In last year’s pre-election budget, the Mahayuti government made several popular decisions that are believed to have played a major role in helping them return to power in Maharashtra.

The state’s revenue expenditure for 2024-25 is estimated at Rs 5,19,514 crore, while the revised expenditure estimate for 2023-24 is Rs 5,05,647 crore. The fiscal deficit for 2024-25 is estimated at 2.4%, while the revenue deficit is estimated at 0.4%.

The budget session of the Maharashtra Legislature has resumed. Deputy CM Ajit Pawar is set to table the state budget anytime now. Stay with us for further updates and all coverage regarding which department got what.

Expectations are running pretty high ahead of Maharashtra budget presentation. As Deputy CM Ajit Pawar is set to present the Maharashtra budget in the Assembly today, the state government is expected to focus on economic growth and also increase the financial aid.

Despite Maharashtra facing financial challenges, Fadnavis has has promised that the state will not reduce spending on welfare or infrastructure. Instead, the government plans to increase revenue through different methods, such as borrowing, monetisation programs, and public-private partnerships like annuity and build-operate-transfer schemes for infrastructure projects. We will have to wait and watch the state budget has in for the infrastructure today.

According to Maharashtra’s Economic Survey, the state leads in the list of top 10 states in nominal GSDP during 2023-24. Maharashtra is followed by Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh, Karnataka, Gujarat, West Bengal, Rajasthan, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, and Madhya Pradesh. The per capita income of Maharashtra is Rs 2,78,681, which is less than Tamil Nadu’s Rs 3,15,220, Karnataka’s Rs 3,32,926 and also Gujarat’s Rs 2,97,722.

Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has announced a rise in the state’s support for farmers under the Namo Shetkari Samman Nidhi, increasing the annual amount from Rs 6,000 to Rs 9,000. This suggests that the upcoming budget will focus on helping farmers. However, there are concerns about how the government will fund this increase without adding extra financial pressure.

Ajit Pawar will become the second Finance Minister to present the most budgets, keeping a total of 11. The record is still held by Sheshrao Wankhede, who presented the state budget 13 times. Ajit Pawar will have the second-highest record, followed by Jayant Patil (who has presented the state budget 10 times) and Sushil kumar Shinde (who has presented the budget 9 times), according to the press release. This will be the first budget for the new Mahayuti government and Pawar’s 11th time presenting the budget as Finance Minister.

The Budget is being presented ahead of upcoming elections for local bodies, including major cities like Mumbai, Thane, Pune, Nashik, Aurangabad, Pimpri-Chinchwad, Nagpur, and Amravati, which are expected to take place soon.

On the first day of the Budget session of the Maharashtra State Assembly, the government had presented additional funding requests totaling Rs 6,486 crore. Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar, who is in charge of finance, presented these requests, which are extra funds that the state government needs beyond the original budget. Out of the Rs 6,486 crore, Rs 2,133.25 crore is for projects funded by the central government.

The state’s economic survey, which was tabled in the assembly on March 7, Maharashtra’s economy will grow by 7.3% in 2024-25, according to early estimates. This growth is higher than the entire country’s economy, which is expected to grow by 6.5% in the same period, according to the survey report.

The Maharashtra budget is expected to be presented by Ajit Pawar at around 11:00 am. The state tabled the pre-Budget Economic Survey in the assembly on March 7. The Maharashtra budget session began on March 3.

Pawar’s budgets have emphasized agriculture, industry, transportation, healthcare, and human resource development. Last year’s pre-election budget was hailed as inclusive and transformative, with its public-friendly policies playing a key role in Mahayuti’s return to power.

With growing anticipation across the state, many believe Ajit Pawar will once again present a budget that meets Maharashtra’s aspirations.

Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde stated that the recently presented state budget is people-centric, reaffirming the Mahayuti government’s commitment to public welfare. He further emphasized that the government will continue its efforts to serve the people of Maharashtra over the next five years.

Speaking to the media, Shinde said “The budget is for the people, this government is for the people. We worked for the people in these two and a half years…We worked for the progress of the people, for the change in their lives. Similar work will be done in the next five years.”

During the pandemic, when many states faced financial crises, Pawar’s fiscal prudence earned praise. Maharashtra’s budgets under his leadership have focused on various sectors, including farmers, laborers, women, Dalits, tribals, students, and youth.

Deputy Chief Minister and Finance Minister Ajit Pawar will present Maharashtra’s budget for FY 2025-26 on Monday. This marks the first budget under the Mahayuti government and Pawar’s 11th as Finance Minister, according to a press release from the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP).