Siddaramaiah to present 13th state budget tomorrow

Team Udayavani, Feb 15, 2018, 4:30 PM IST

Bengaluru: Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, who additionally holds the Finance portfolio, would set a record of sorts on Friday by presenting his thirteenth state budget plan and sixth in row, an authority said on Wednesday.

Siddaramaiah will show the financial plan for 2018-19 on Friday however it won’t be an undeniable budget but a vote-on-account budget in view of the coming polls, reports said.

Siddaramaiah has produced six budgets so far as the Congress Chief Minister since 2013 and seven as Deputy Chief Minister in the primary Congress-Janata Dal coalition government in 2005- 07 and in the later Janata Dal-United (JD-U) government from 1995-2000. He has presented the state budget for seven times under three Chief Ministers – twice under HD Deve Gowda in 1995 and 1996, three times under J.H. Patel of the JD-U in 1997, 1998 and 1999 and under Congress’ N. Dharam Singh in 2005 and 2006, the official said.

Siddaramaiah is likewise the second in Karnataka to finish the five-year term as Chief Minister – 40 years after Devaraj Urs (1972-78) as around 10 Chief Ministers of three parties couldn’t finish their full term in between for different reasons.

Siddaramaiah changed over to the Congress from the JD-S in August 2006 after contrasts with its leader and former Prime Minister HD Deve Gowda and his second child and former Chief Minister HD Kumaraswamy.

As indicated by sources in the state Finance Ministry, the budget would have higher designation in the health sector to broaden the state government’s ‘Arogya Bhagya’ health insurance to different areas, including farmers, craftsmans, senior citizens, state employees and employees in civic departments. The budget is also likely to concentrate on higher allocation for education, housing, irrigation, agriculture, energy and infrastructure, especially for Bengaluru as it is the IT capital of the country.

In the upcoming elections if the Congress comes into power and Siddaramaiah becomes Chief Minister again, he could present his 14th state budget in July.