04 T
C ivic/S ocial
20-26 March 2015
Haryana Budget
like the linking of 4,000 villages with the Internet he Haryana Budget presented by Finance by September 2015, supply of maize and bajra at Minister Capt. Abhimanyu Singh seems subsidised rates through PDS at Rs 1 per kg each, in to have bet on higher growth in the State economy. The focus is on increasing revenue by addition to wheat at Rs 2 per kg. The Budget however does not provide for unemployment alboosting the industrial sector. The govlowance for youth, which was promised by ernment says that the goal is to push the Party. The FM has repeatedly claimed 'Made in Haryana’. Assuming the highthat the economy of the State was in the er revenue, the Budget has increased doldrums when BJP took over, and this allocations for education, skill developBudget has tried to 'rebalance the books' by ment, job creation and power - leaving reducing spend on non-profitable ventures a revenue deficit of Rs 9,558 crores. The and PSUs. By announcing no district speState debt is expected to increase from Rs cific program, the govt. has sent the mes81,836 crores to Rs 98,848 crores. In 2014-15 sage that it wants equal and uniform deHaryana grew at 7.8 per cent, against the Abhimanyu Singh velopment of the entire State. The Budget All India growth rate of 8 per cent. Capt. however omits any mention of EWS HousAbhimanyu said that his Budget aimed ing or parity in salary of govt. staff vis a at high growth, balanced regional devis Punjab employees. GL Sharma, State velopment and good governance. He Executive Manager, BJP Haryana said said that the Budget document was a tool that more expenditure in the social and for social development, positive change and infrastructure sectors would spur growth inclusion. As a major relief to the common in the State. “The schemes for girl child as man, and industry as well, the FM did not well as for villages will transform the rural announce any new taxes. He reduced VAT landscape,” he added. He also opined that on bio-fertilisers, LED lights, pipe fittings focus on skill development and jobs for and prefabricated steel structures. In the GL Sharma youth will help tackle the rampant unemsocial sector, the Finance Minister has anployment in the State. The BJP governnounced schemes like Beti Bachao, ASHA, ment has also shown through this Budget Protsahan Yojana, Aapki Beti-Hamari Beti that equal development in all parts of the State was Scheme and the Kanya Kosh Scheme. The Budget possible, unlike the past when development was also launched the Swachh Haryana-Swachh Bharat always lopsided, he said. Vashist Kumar Goyal, a Abhiyaan in villages, along with Vidhayak Aadarsh businessman, hailed the Budget for imposing no Gram Yojana and the Swaprerit Aadarsh Gram new taxes and for reducing VAT for certain items. Yojana (for the development of villages with the “We now must build more flyovers, roads and other support of MLAs and other prominent persons and infrastructure as these developments fuel growth,” organisations). The FM also made good on some he added. u promises made by the BJP in its election manifesto, The Budget for FY 2015-16, presented in the Haryana Assembly by Capt. Abhimanyu Singh, Minister of Finance, Haryana, proposed neither a hike in any tax rate nor any new taxes. H P Yadav, President, NCR Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Gurgaon, said that there was only a mention of the New Industrial Policy - the final policy is still awaited. Hopefully the several suggestions of industry would be incorporated. Yadav stated that the decision to set up an 800MW Thermal Power Plant in Panipat, and the resolve to ensure speedy completion of the Kundli Manesar Palwal (KMP Expressway), Is com-
mendable. While the extension of Delhi Metro from Dwarka to Gurgaon is on expected lines, the earlier plan to extend the Metro from Gurgaon to Manesar seems to have been put on the back burner - and the H P Yadav Manesar to Rewari link looks more like a dream now. “We were also expecting the withdrawal of External Development Charges (EDC) and the resolution of dual property taxation in Industrial areas,” said Yadav. Further, in view of deteriorating labour conditions, NCR Chamber of Commerce and Industry
has been demanding a Haryana Industrial Peacekeeping Group (from Haryana Police). “While the Minister talked of Make in Haryana, there was no mention of Industrial Safety. There was also no mention of incentive/subsidy for the installation/use of Solar/ Renewable Energy. Finally, and most importantly, our request for the setting up of a Tax Free Industrial Zone in a barren, remote area(s) of the State, which would help propel Make in India, has again been denied,” said Yadav. According to him, overall this was a ‘general’ Budget.
Free at last A
fter almost three long years of incarceration, and three weeks after the Supreme Court granted bail to two Maruti workers alleged to be involved in the violence at the Company’s plant that led to the death of an officer in 2012, a Gurgaon court has granted bail to another 77 workers. The bail was given by the court of Additional District and Sessions Judge S K Khanduja. Bail application for around 40 more workers is likely to be filed next week in the same court. Rajender Pathak, lawyer for the workers, told Friday Gurgaon that the main contention was that these workers have been falsely implicated, and there is no evidence against them. A majority of the workers have not been identified by eyewitnesses, and the prosecution has failed to produce a single credible witness against the workers, he added. Pathak further alleged that despite negligible evidence against the workers, and they not being habitual offenders, the government has been misusing the State apparatus against them. He said that it is unheard of in a democracy that workers are denied bail and held for years in jail, without the backing of any sound evidence. Sources said that the change in government and the dropping of senior lawyer KTS Tulsi, who was fighting on behalf of the erstwhile government, have helped the workers. The recent bail to two Maruti workers by the Supreme Court was also probably one of the reasons why the lower court could boldly take this decision, said Pathak. The jailed workers had been repeatedly denied bail, and in May 2013 even the High Court had refused to grant them bail. It observed: ‘The incident is a most unfortunate occurrence, which has lowered the reputation of India in the estimation of the world. Foreign investors are not likely to invest money in India out of fear of labour unrest’. It is alleged that the workers were ‘picked’ randomly, with an objective to teach them a lesson. A majority of the workers are the only earning members in their families. The Maruti workers said that a thorough probe should be ordered and the truth must come out. Pathak said that while the bail given to workers has given him hope, the real problem is the lack of support from State authorities, who always seem to prefer to side with the corporates instead of helping the workers. “We want the government to treat both sides equally,” he said. The Maruti workers and their union were elated that the court had finally come to their rescue. Kuldip Janghu, President, Maruti Udyog Workers Union, said, “Now we will ask the Company to take these workers back. The Union will fight for all the 546 employees who were terminated, and several others who were fired without being paid any compensation,” he added.u
Bikaner Sweets and Restaurant opened this week in Palam Vihar, opposite Celebrity Homes. Owner Banwari Lal says that they have always offered quality sweets and delicious food. With a decade's experience in this industry, Lal is confident that his new venture will be well appreciated by the residents of the colony and nearby areas.