Bengal Finance Minister Amit Mitra has announced a massive Rs 1 lakh financial assistance scheme for 50,000 unemployed youth for promoting self-employment and severely criticized the central government for high unemployment rate.
Escalating her fight with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Mamata Banerjee in Bengal on Monday announced a populist budget raising the poll pitch. The West Bengal Budget rolled out sops and benefits for small farmers, unemployed youth and women before the Lok Sabha election.
Bengal Finance Minister Amit Mitra has announced a massive Rs 1 lakh financial assistance scheme for 50,000 unemployed youth for promoting self-employment and severely criticized the central government for high unemployment rate.
While the Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee is sitting on Dharna since late Sunday, the state's finance minsiter presented a Rs 2.37 lakh-crore state budget with a Rs 9-crore deficit.in the assembly. Focusing upon the farmers, West Bengal has become the third state after Odisha and Telangana in providing minimum support scheme to the farmers.
In the Budget, the West Begal government has raised the monthly wages for contractual workers and data entry operators by Rs 2000 from February and proposed a raise of ex-gratia payment to contractual workers to Rs 3 lakh from Rs 2 lakh.
The state administration has been using nearly 1 lakh workers in several fields including police and health departments.
Bengal Chambers of Commerce and Industry said the budget has given stress on farmers and the poorer sections of the society, as well as on MSMEs, tourism and the tea industry.
Industry bodies on Monday hailed the West Bengal Budget for 2019-20 for its focus on farmers, social infrastructure and incentives for sectors like MSMEs, tea and healthcare.
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"The Government has achieved the dual feat of steering economic growth, as well as empowering the common people with continued support in social infrastructure," Bharat Chamber of Commerce president Sitaram Sharma said.
Though there is no special policy announcement for the industry at large, "we expect some big-ticket reforms at the ensuing 2019 Bengal Global Business Summit (scheduled for February 7-8)," he added.
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The MCCI said the full exemption on education cess and rural employment cess for tea gardens has been extended for two more years, which augurs well for the sector.
"Bengal government has given more emphasis to develop the MSME sector, and credit flow to this sector achieved 13 per cent growth to Rs 20,287 crore during April to September 2018, which is noteworthy," MCCI president Vishal Jhajharia said.
Medica Hospitals chairman Alok Roy added: "The budget has a definite and positive outlook for the future of the healthcare sector. The allocation of Rs 9,556 crore for the next fiscal year towards health and family welfare is indeed optimistic for the sector."
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 "West Bengal Budget: Mamata Banerjee raises poll pitch with focus upon farmers, MSMEs")
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