The third Narendra Modi government’s first budget on Tuesday seemed to underline the BJP’s reduced strength in the Lok Sabha, with major concessions granted to Bihar and Andhra Pradesh.
The ruling parties in these two states — Chandrababu Naidu’s Telugu Desam Party and Nitish Kumar’s Janata Dal United — together command 28 Lok Sabha members and are key to the stability of the Union government, led by a BJP that is 32 short of majority.
In her budget speech, finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman proposed financial aid and development projects for both states. As she kept raining sops on Bihar and Andhra, the Opposition benches protested what they saw as preferential treatment for the two allies at the cost of others.
Neither Naidu nor Nitish had bargained for ministerial berths, choosing instead to lobby for financial aid to their states. On Tuesday, both expressed happiness with the budget bounty.
Nitish seemed to have gained more than Naidu, possibly because Bihar is to vote towards the end of next year and the BJP’s stakes in the eastern state are high.
Sources said more financial aid could come in the future to Andhra, where Assembly elections are five years away.
The focus on the two allies left Maharashtra, Haryana and Jharkhand — where polls are expected later this year — without anything substantial.
Bihar bonanza
For Bihar, Sitharaman proposed highway development, a bridge, new airports and medical colleges, new sports infrastructure, flood-control infrastructure, tourism centres and temple corridors.
She promised to “expedite” the state government’s requests for “external assistance” from multilateral banks. The concessions came a day after the Centre had rejected Bihar’s demand for special state status.
Sitharaman said the Centre would support road connectivity projects involving the “Patna-Purnea Expressway, Buxar-Bhagalpur Expressway and Bodhgaya, Rajgir, Vaishali and Darbhanga spurs”.
“Additional two-lane bridge over river Ganga at Buxar at a total cost of ₹26,000 crore. Power projects, including setting up of a new 2400MW power plant at Pirpainti, will be taken up at a cost of ₹21,400 crore,” the finance minister proposed.
“New airports, medical colleges and sports infrastructure in Bihar will be constructed.”
She added: “Our government, through the Accelerated Irrigation Benefit Programme and other sources, will provide financial support for projects with estimated cost of ₹11,500 crore such as the Kosi-Mechi intra-state link and 20 other ongoing and new schemes including barrages, river pollution abatement and irrigation projects.
“In addition, survey and investigation of Kosi-related flood mitigation and irrigation projects will be undertaken.”
Sitharaman proposed the comprehensive development of the Vishnupad and Mahabodhi temple corridors, “modelled on the successful Kashi Vishwanath temple corridor, to transform them into world-class pilgrim and tourist destinations”.
The budget proposals promised to undertake the “comprehensive development” of Rajgir and to “support the development of Nalanda as a tourist centre besides reviving Nalanda University (a project close to Nitish’s heart) to its glorious past”.
Under a “Purvodaya” plan for the all-round development of the eastern region, Sitharaman proposed “support for development of an industrial node at Gaya” on the Amritsar-Kolkata Industrial Corridor.
“The industrial node at Gaya will also be a good model for developing our ancient centres of cultural importance into future centres of modern economy,” Sitharaman said.
Andhra package
Sitharaman proposed ₹15,000 crore for Andhra in the current financial year as development aid, with assurances of additional amounts in future years.
She promised “special financial support through multilateral development agencies” towards a new capital for the state.
On another key demand of the Desam, Sitharaman said: “Our government is fully committed to financing and early completion of the Polavaram Irrigation Project, which is the lifeline for Andhra Pradesh and its farmers. This will facilitate our country’s food security as well.”
She promised grants for the backward regions of Rayalaseema, Prakasam and north coastal Andhra.
Nitish welcomed the budget allocations, indicating he had toned down the demand for special category status and was satisfied with the special assistance for Bihar’s development.
“We had sought special category status for Bihar or special assistance for development…. They (the Centre) today announced help for several sectors. The real thing is that we are working so much for Bihar’s progress and it will be beneficial for us if we get additional aid from the Centre,” he told reporters on the Assembly premises.
He said the JDU had sought special category status but the Centre had told it that the measure had been stopped a long time ago.
“So, we sought assistance for Bihar’s development. They (the Centre) have started doing so,” he said.
The Bihar Opposition, however, slammed the state government for failing to secure special category status for the state, forcing two adjournments at the Assembly before staging a walkout.
Nitish hit back saying he had been vigorously demanding special category status since 2010.
“But those who are talking about it today denied it when they were in power at the Centre,” he added.
In a post on X, Naidu said: “On behalf of the people of Andhra Pradesh, I thank the Hon’ble Prime Minister, @narendramodi Ji and Hon’ble Union Finance Minister, @nsitharaman Ji, for recognising the needs of our State and focusing on a Capital, Polavaram, industrial nodes and development of backward areas in AP in the union budget of FY 24-25.”
Congress communications chief Jairam Ramesh taunted Naidu, posting: “In 2018, Chandrababu Naidu garu quit the NDA because of the non-biological PM’s failure to grant Andhra Pradesh Special Category Status. Six years after the drama, at a time when the Government is reliant on his MPs for support, all he has managed to get is ‘special financial support’ for Amravati.”
Additional reporting by Dev Raj from Patna
