Team Herald
PANJIM: With the aim of ‘Vision for All’, Chief Minister Dr Pramod Sawant is set to present his government’s last State Budget for the current term. He will rise to table the annual Financial Statement for 2021-22 on the Floor of the House at 2.30 pm on Wednesday. The government will seek a vote on account for one month before the Budget is debated and passed.
Notwithstanding the Opposition demand to curtail the 13-day (sittings) Budget session of the State Legislative Assembly, the session will commence on Wednesday and go on till April 16, with three public holidays besides weekends. The House will not sit on March 29, on account of Holi, April 1 being Maundy Thursday and April 2, which is Good Friday.
Legislative Affairs Secretary Namrata Ulman told media persons that the Chief Minister, who holds finance portfolio, will present the Financial Statement for 2021-22 on Wednesday. “The Budget would be passed during the ongoing session. A vote on account for one month would be taken,” Ulman said.
‘Vision for All’ and the ‘Swayampurna Goem’ will be focus points of the State Budget, as the Sawant government will face the electorate in general elections to Legislative Assembly early next year. The Chief Minister has already announced his plans to make Goa Swayampurna by December 19, this year, which will be the 60th anniversary of Goa’s Liberation.
The Opposition is expected to create a ruckus in the House over curtailment of the session on account of the elections in five municipalities due in April.
The Opposition including Congress, Goa Forward Party (GFP) and Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party (MGP) has demanded that the Assembly session be curtailed after presenting the Budget and be held once elections to the five municipalities end. They had also called upon Goa Governor B S Koshyari and State Election Commissioner W V Ramanamurthy demanding that directions be issued to the government to curtail the session.
In view of rising COVID cases, the State Legislative Affairs has banned the entry of visitors to the Assembly complex and has also restricted the number of government officials per day.
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LOP demands white paper on financial status
A day before the Chief Minister presents the State Budget 2021-22, Leader of Opposition Digambar Kamat on Tuesday demanded to know the status of the implementation of last Budget.
In a tweet, Kamat also sought to know why the Chief Minister is afraid to release a white paper on the financial status of Goa.
“The Goa CM must explain how many schemes, promises and announcements from Budget 2020-21 have actually seen the light of day before passing the new Budget,” Kamat tweeted.
“Why is the BJP-led government afraid to release a white paper on financial status of Goa? Let us all know the truth with facts and figures,” the former CM tweeted further.
"It is in the rule book of procedure and conduct of business that the replies to the Starred LAQs are to be provided two days before the date of the answer. Unfortunately, the government has failed to provide me with a proper answer within the stipulated time to my LAQ which was postponed in the last session and which is listed on the first day of this session. It is the responsibility of the government to provide factual replies to the questions in time bound manner,” he said.
"The BJP government is now trying to bring restrictions on the questions tabled for the Question Hour. If government wants to put these limitations it is better to call off the Question Hour. On one hand the government is not giving proper and time-bound replies to the RTI applications. Now by putting restrictions on framing of questions the government is trying to hide something,” Kamat charged.