Tripura Finance Minister Pranajit Singha Roy on Friday presented the budget for the financial year 2024-25. The proposed budget allocation amounts to Rs 27,804.67 crore, marking an 8.47 percent increase from the revised estimate of the previous fiscal year, 2023-24.

The capital expenditure is projected at Rs 6,633.80 crore, reflecting an increase of 23.80 percent over the previous financial year’s budget estimate. Singha Roy announced a budget deficit of Rs 410.69 crore, Finance minister Singha Roy said while briefing media persons at the Assembly premises here in Agartala city on Friday afternoon.

He said “The state budget is inclusive, futuristic and growth oriented. It has something or other for the every section of the society whether it is women, students, youth, transgenders, janajati, scheduled castes, OBCs, minorities, employees, pensioners and public as a whole. The state economy is growing at very high rate. The state’s own Tax Revenue is projected as Rs 3,748 crore and state’s non-Tax Revenue is projected as Rs 475 crore.”

“The budget has allocated over Rs 1721.94 crore for Agri. & allied sector with an increase of 19.88 percent over BE 2023-24. The budget allocated over Rs 5508.63 crore for Education sector with an increase of 11.54 percent over BE 2023-24. The budget has allocated over Rs. 1726.23 Cr for Health sector. 2 (two) new Agri Sub-Divisions, one at Jubarajnagar, North Tripura and another at Old Agartala, West Tripura will be opened. One ‘Residual testing lab’ and 1 (one) ‘Germ plasm preservation Centre at State Agriculture Research Station, Arundhati Nagar will be establish with project cost of Rs. 10.00 Crore. 8 (eight) new Agri Development Research Centres will be constructed during 2024-25 with financial involvement of Rs. 23.71 Crores. A Centre of Excellence on Citrus under the Indo-Dutch project at Taidu with project cost of Rs.9.17 Crore and a Centre of Excellence on Flowers under the Indo-Israel action plan at Lembuchhera with a project cost of Rs. 10.00 Crore have been planned in the state for scientific cultivation of fruits, vegetables and flowers and supply of best quality planting materials.”

“4 (four) Pisciculture Knowledge Centers and I (one) State Fishery Awareness Centre will be set-up (Rs. 17.13 Crore). New buildings for 21 secondary schools will be constructed under RIDF funding (Rs. 123.78 crores). Mata Tripurasundari Open University will be set up at Udaipur under private initiative. 200 (two hundred) bedded Multi Care Health Unit will be constructed at AGMC and GBP hospital complex, Agartala (Rs. 192 Crore) under PM-DevINE. One-time financial support of Rs 1 lakh per student will be provided to 400 Scheduled Caste students. An amount of Rs. 4.00 Crore will be spent for this. Different developmental works will be taken up in different minority dominated villages during 2024-25 and a budget allocation of Rs. 35 crores has been kept under Pradahan Mantri Jana Vikash Karyakram. More 29,410 people were included under “Mukhyamantri Samajik Sahayak Prakalpa” from 1 January, 2024 and for this additional financial involvement be Rs.70.58 Crore per annum. Setting-up of 2 (Two) Shakti Sadan under Mission Shakti of Government of India at Matabari and Teliamura for destitute women (Rs. 10.62 Crore). 77 new Anganwadi Centres (AWCs) will be set-up at the habitations in which people belonging to primitive and vulnerable tribal groups got settlement under PM-JANMAN (Rs. 9.24 Crore). 50 (fifty) smoke houses for processing of rubber sheets will be constructed at various tribal dominated areas (Rs.37.50 Crore).”

“11 (eleven) 50 seated ST Girls Hostel and 10 (ten) 50 seated ST Boys Hostel will be constructed (Rs. 76.65 Crore). Infrastructure development of Tirthamukh Mela Ground will be taken up (Rs. 15.11 Crore). State Government will provide a total amount of Rs 698.68 Crote to TTAADC. This amount is over and above the fund to be transferred from share of taxes under 5th State Finance Commission for Village Councils under TTAADC area. Besides, State Government is allocating 39.93 percent of total development allocation for welfare of Janjati brothers and sisters. During 2024-25, State Government will provide new vehicles to all BDOs (Rs. 7.40 Crore). State Government is giving emphasis on sanitation. A new demand has been opened for the year 2024-25 exclusively for sanitation. An allocation of Rs.139.96 Crore is kept. State Government will conduct drone survey of the land for updating existing revenue maps in collaboration with the Survey of India under “SVAMITVA” scheme. Constitute a Land Bank, under which unused Government land will be developed, and thereafter, land will be given on lease for different uses. Private land in the vicinity of such government land, if required, will also be purchased and developed along with Government land. (Rs. 10 crore). Rs. 2000.00 Crore over the period of next 4 (four) years will be spent for road infrastructure works covering all 60 assembly constituencies for new construction or redevelopment of 30 kms road in each of the Assembly constituency. 8 minor irrigation projects will be constructed. 11 (eleven) lift irrigation scheme and 183 Deep Tube Well will be sunk. It will bring an additional 2500 hectare of land under cultivation with financial implication of Rs. 110.64 Crore. Rs. 100.70 crore will be spent under NABARD funding for taking up anti-erosion work for the protection of river banks at different locations of the State. All habitations inhabited by primitive vulnerable tribal groups will be electrified, under ‘PM JANMAN’ (Rs. 69.12 crore). 85 Pink Toilets will be constructed at different locations of different towns to create hygienic public restrooms for women and children. (Rs. 7.51 crore)”, Singha told reporters.