Parliament Budget Session 2024 Highlights: Opposition blasts Centre over major Budget allocations for Bihar, Andhra Pradesh

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman along with her team with the Budget tablet outside the Ministry of Finance in North Block. She headed to Rashtrapati Bhavan to call on President Droupadi Murmu, ahead of the Budget presentation at 11 am.

While tabling the Economic Survey in Parliament, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Monday described the Indian economy as being on a “strong wicket and stable footing” and resilient in the face of geopolitical challenges.

“The economy has consolidated post-Covid recovery with policymakers – fiscal and monetary – ensuring economic and financial stability…” she said.

Alliance partners of the ruling National Democratic Alliance are in focus as Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman presents her seventh Union Budget in Parliament today. Both Nitish Kumar and Chandrababu Naidu, leaders of the JD(U) and TDP respectively, have voiced their demands before the Centre. These include special status and significant financial allocation for their states.

All eyes are on how the Centre balances the demands of the key BJP allies with Prime Minister Narendra Modi‘s ‘Viksit Bharat@2047’ goal, which would require significant allocations for infrastructure and the government’s flagship schemes, among others.

Minister of State for Finance Pankaj Chaudhary on Tuesday said that the first Union Budget of the third Modi government will be based on his mantra of ‘Sabka Sath Sabka Vikas’.

Chaudhary was among the first from Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman’s team to reach the North Block offices of the Finance Ministry ahead of the Budget presentation. (ANI)

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman arrived at the Ministry of Finance on Tuesday morning ahead of the Union Budget 2024 presentation.

Will the Union Budget 2024 be a Naidu-Nitish ‘yukt’ Budget? As Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman presents her first Budget of the Modi 3.0 government, all eyes are on NDA allies TDP and the JD(U), led by Chandrababu Naidu and Nitish Kumar, respectively.

Both parties have shared a love-hate relationship with the BJP over the years and their presence in the ruling alliance government may be contingent upon the allocations the Centre can afford to its partners. Both leaders made a spirited pitch for the special status category for Andhra Pradesh and Bihar. However, their aggression subsided gradually, indicating that they may have agreed to settle for a financial package instead.

In a post on X (formerly Twitter), Congress leader Jairam Ramesh said, “India is in its most precarious and difficult economic situation in many years. The Economic Survey 2023-24 presents a cherry-picked view of the economy, but we hope that tomorrow’s Budget faces up to the country’s realities.”

– Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman tabled the Economic Survey 2023-24 in the Parliament on the first day of the Budget Session. The survey says that the Indian economy is resilient and has seen strong recovery post the pandemic.

– The survey has conservatively estimated that India’s real GDP will grow at an approximate 6.6-7 per cent in FY25.

– Meanwhile, the Opposition demanded Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan’s resignation over the NEET paper leak issue. Samajwadi Party MP Akhilesh Yadav said this government will make a record of paper leaks.

– Rajya Sabha Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar rejected notices from opposition MPs calling for a discussion on Uttar Pradesh government’s order asking shops along the Kanwar Yatra route to display names of their owners and staff.

– Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla appealed to all parties to cooperate and engage in meaningful discussions during the Budget Session of Parliament starting on Monday.

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