With defeats in state assembly elections at the end of the year and the recent Lok Sabha elections hanging over its head, Chief Minister Eknath Shinde’s Mahyuti government on Friday presented a budget that put politics over the economy.
This is the first budget for states since the Lok Sabha elections that saw the Narendra Modi government return to power, but thanks to the strength of its allies’ numbers, the announcements have been beneficial for everyone – farmers, women, students, youth, etc. It is another matter that Maharashtra will struggle to deliver on these promises given its financial situation, with the state’s debt standing at Rs 7.89 trillion.
The budget proposals included a number of incentives involving an outlay of over 1 million crore, including Rs 46,000 crore for the Mukhyamantri Majhi Ladki Bahin Scheme, Rs 10,000 crore for the CM Yuva Karya Prasikshan Scheme, Rs 14,761 crore for an electricity bill waiver scheme for farmers using agricultural pumps up to a certain horsepower, and the Annapurna Scheme to provide three cylinders per year free of charge to over 5.2 million households across the state.
Presenting his 10th Budget – eight of which were under non-BJP governments – Finance Minister Ajit Pawar said, “While preparing the Budget, we will also consider fundraising to achieve the targets.”
The Mukhyamantri Majhi Ladki Bahin scheme will transfer Rs 1,500 to the bank accounts of eligible women aged between 21 and 60 every month from July 2024. Women make up 48% of the electorate in the state.
The plan is modelled on the Madhya Pradesh government’s “Raadli Beena” initiative, whose similar cash transfer promises and policies for women have fetched results for other parties in recent elections.
Regarding farmers, the Mahayuti government’s budget promised area-specific financial support and welfare schemes for onion, soya bean and cotton farmers. The unrest of cotton and soya bean farmers is believed to have caused heavy losses for the BJP in its traditional stronghold of Vidarbha region in the Lok Sabha elections, reducing it to two out of 10 seats.
Small cotton and soyabean farmers owning up to two hectares of land will be entitled to financial assistance of Rs 5,000 per hectare during the kharhu season, while onion growers in north Maharashtra will be offered a package of Rs 8,510 crore. Moreover, dairy farmers will get a subsidy of Rs 5 per litre of milk, an assistance that will essentially extend to western Maharashtra.
It is hoped that these incentives may boost local economies ahead of state elections.
Following the results of the Lok Sabha elections, state BJP leaders expressed frustration that their concerns over the central government’s failure to enforce the onion export ban and address falling soybean and cotton prices were ignored by leaders in Delhi. The Mahayuti government was seen as putting consumer interests above those of farmers.
The BJP is trying to win back its OBC support base, alienated by the Mahayuti Party’s dilly-dallying on the Maratha quota issue, and its budget proposals include a scheme to reimburse 100 per cent of tuition and examination fees for girls from OBC and economically weaker sections, covering professional degree/diploma courses in engineering, architecture, pharmacy, medicine and agriculture, benefiting around 20.5 lakh girls from 2024-25.
The plan is expected to require an additional expenditure of Rs 2,000 crore per year.
With unemployment perceived to be a universal cause of discontent against the BJP government, the Mahayuti government announced a monthly stipend of Rs 10,000 to one million interns under the CM Yuva Karya Prashikshan scheme.
The cut in petrol prices by 65 paisa per litre and diesel by Rs 2.07 per litre is expected to ease inflationary pressures, which is seen as another factor behind the BJP’s dwindling popularity.
Finally, Rs 20,000 is allocated to each group that makes the annual pilgrimage to Pandharpur. Devotees of Lord Vitthal, or Warkari, live all over Maharashtra.
In the recent Lok Sabha elections, the BJP’s tally in Maharashtra dropped to nine seats from the 23 it won in 2019. Overall, the Mahayuti won just 17 of the 48 seats, while its rival Maha Vikas Aghadi alliance won 30 seats.
