Gujarat Government Presents Historic Budget In Assembly; Breaches Rs 2 Lakh Crore Mark For The First Time

Vijay Rupani-led Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government in the state of Gujarat achieved a landmark on Tuesday (2 July) when its Finance Minister Nitin Patel proposed a budget exceeding Rs 2 lakh crore, a first for the state since its creation, reports Hindu Businessline.

Presenting his seventh budget as Gujarat's Finance Minister, Patel put forth a budget size of Rs 2,04,815 crore for the year 2019-20, with the spending and investments primarily focused on five sectors- water management, green and clean energy, the environment, agriculture and farmers’ welfare, and employment.

"This is a historical moment for the state as it is the first time since the formation of the state that a budget size of over Rs 2 lakh crore has been presented in this house," Patel said.

In his budget speech, Patel promised to spend about Rs 20,000 crore over the next three years to ensure that no household in Gujarat was left without tapped drinking water.

He also emphasised that the state would invest heavily into the clean energy space and increase its installed capacity of clean energy from present 8,885 MW to 30,000 MW by 2022. Of this, Patel said that the state plans to sell 10,000 MW to other states.

Patel also underscored that the economy of the state had achieved an impressive growth of 10 per cent (at constant rates) over the past six years, which was the highest among the major states. He also added that the state had achieved a stellar growth rate of 11.2 per cent in 2017-18.