Budget 2024-25 Discussion To Continue In Parliament Today

The debate on the Union Budget 2024-25, presented on July 23, is set to continue in both Houses of Parliament today. The discussion on the Jammu and Kashmir Budget 2024-25, also presented on the same day, will proceed as well.

Union Ministers Gajendra Singh Shekhawat, Jitendra Singh, Arjun Ram Meghwal, and Kirtivardhan Singh are scheduled to lay papers on the table. Additionally, Union Minister Sukanta Majumdar is expected to make a statement regarding the implementation status of recommendations and observations from the 250th report of the Department-related Parliamentary Standing Committee on Home Affairs concerning the 243rd report on demands for grants (2023-24) of the Ministry of Development of North Eastern Region.

Discussions on the Union Budget 2024 began on July 24, with opposition parties criticizing it as "discriminatory" and lacking vision. Former Finance Minister and Congress MP P Chidambaram initiated the debate in the Rajya Sabha, while Congress MP Kumari Selja led the discussion in the Lok Sabha.

Chidambaram identified four major challenges, highlighting unemployment as the most significant. According to the Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE), the unemployment rate for June 2024 is 9.2 percent. Chidambaram stressed the need for creating sufficient employment opportunities, pointing out that the employment-linked incentives (ELI) scheme implies the Production Linked Incentives (PLI) scheme is not yielding the expected results. He urged the Finance Minister to disclose the number of jobs generated by the PLI scheme.

BJP's Radha Mohan Das Aggarwal praised the government’s achievements under Prime Minister Narendra Modi, citing the Jan Dhan Yojana, which has extended banking services to millions. BJP's Biplab Kumar Deb noted the Economic Survey's projection of a 6.5 to 7 percent real GDP growth for 2024-25 and highlighted budget provisions for farmers and the education sector.

Trinamool Congress MP Abhishek Banerjee criticized the Union Budget, claiming it lacks clarity and vision. He accused the government of designing the budget to appease BJP coalition partners, stating it was "planned by two individuals to keep another two in good faith."

The budget session of Parliament, which began on July 22, is scheduled to conclude on August 12.

Also Read: Budget 2024-2025 Highlights