Srinagar, Mar 14 (KNN) Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Monday presented in the Lok Sabha Rs 1.18 lakh crore Budget for Jammu and Kashmir for the year 2023-24.

The Budget focuses on doubling UT’s GDP within five years, providing housing in rural areas and water tap connections to 18.36 lakh households. Other priority areas include job generation and facilitating investment and industrial growth.

During the budget presentation, Sitharaman informed that the union government has planned to roll out light metro rail in Jammu and Srinagar during the next financial year.

All 18.36 lakh households of Jammu and Kashmir will have functional tap connections by 2023-24, Sitharaman said, adding that every household would be provided drinking water with minimum 55 litres per capita per day and of prescribed quality on regular, long term and sustainable basis.

The Finance Minister informed that an allotment of Rs 2,526.74 crore has been made to agriculture and horticulture.

Other major allotments included Rs 4,169.26 crore to rural department, Rs 1,964.90 crore to power sector, Rs 7,161 crore to Jal Shakti, Rs 2,928.04 crore to housing and urban development, Rs 1,521.87 crore to education and Rs 4,062.87 crore to construction of roads and bridges.

“The tax/GDP ratio is projected at 8.82 per cent for 2023-24 which is higher than the previous year of 7.77 per cent,” she said.

Sitharaman said the debt/GDP ratio for 2023-24 was pegged as 49 per cent and the GDP growth for the Union Territory for 2023-24 has been projected at Rs 2,30,727 crore which shows a growth of 10 per cent over the previous year.  (KNN Bureau)