Haryana CM terms Budget development-oriented opposition calls it 'disappointing'

     Chandigarh, Jul 23 (PTI) Haryana Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini on Tuesday hailed the Union Budget and termed it as balanced, all-encompassing, inclusive and development-oriented, but the opposition leaders from the state dubbed it as "disappointing".
     Saini said the Budget will prove to be a milestone in accelerating the standards set by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to fulfil the resolve of 'Viksit Bharat' (developed India).
     Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman presented the Budget for 2024-25, her seventh straight presentation, and the first Budget during Modi-led government's third term in office.
     While Saini hailed the Budget, many senior Congress leaders from Haryana, which goes to polls later this year, termed it as "disappointing", with Leader of Opposition Bhupinder Singh Hooda saying "there was no mention of Haryana anywhere in the Budget".
     Reacting to the Budget, Chief Minister Saini, in a statement, said it has a vision of making agriculture more profitable, strengthening the economy and generating more and more employment by giving new impetus to industrial development.
     The budget aims to fulfil the hopes and aspirations of the poor, women, farmers and youth, Saini said.
     The chief minister said the announcement in the Budget to increase the production of pulses and oilseeds and to strengthen their storage and marketing will significantly encourage farmers adopting crop diversification in Haryana.
     Earlier, in a post on X in Hindi, Saini said Finance Minister Sitharaman has taken full care of the expectations of the poor welfare and the middle class.
     "This Budget is balanced, all-encompassing, inclusive and development-oriented," Saini posted on X.
     He said the Budget 2024-25 is an economic document for the creation of "Developed India, self-reliant India".
     BJP national secretary O P Dhankar hailed the Budget, saying it will establish new dimensions in rural development and progress in the agriculture sector.
     Dhankar said this is a budget that lays the foundation for building a developed India.
     However, Congress leader Bhupinder Singh Hooda said Haryana is hugely disappointed with the Union Budget as there was no mention of the state anywhere in it.
     Congress general secretary and Sirsa MP, Kumari Selja, termed the Budget as "disappointing".
     "Haryana has been totally neglected. It's such a big disappointment," she said.
     Hooda, a two-time former chief minister, in a statement, claimed the Budget has completely disappointed the farmers, small traders, middle class, poor and housewives of the country, "because the people who are facing the brunt of continuous inflation and heavy taxes were not given any relief from inflation".
     "The farmer's hands remained empty once again and this Budget was silent on MSP guarantee. There was no increase in the amount of Kisan Samman Nidhi either.
     "In June 2022, the number of beneficiaries of Kisan Samman Nidhi was 11.39 crore, which has now come down to 9.26 crore," Hooda claimed.
     Hooda also claimed there was no roadmap in the Budget to curb unemployment.
     Congress general secretary Randeep Singh Surjewala termed the Budget as "disappointing".
     He said there is nothing in it for the farmers, no guarantee of minimum support price (MSP) and no relief from debt.
     Surjewala said there is no way to create new jobs, the unorganised sector does not get even a penny and there is nothing for the labour intensive sectors such as textiles and construction.
     He claimed that there is no mention of the words SC, ST or BC (Scheduled Caste, Scheduled Tribe, Backward Class) in Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman's Budget speech.
     He alleged that it is obvious that this is a punishment to these sections of the society for not voting in the BJP's favour in the recently held Lok Sabha elections. It is also the anti-SC-ST-BC face of the BJP, he added.
     Surjewala also said there is definitely a "take revenge" and "save the government" Budget.
     "As Uttar Pradesh defeated them (the BJP) in the Lok Sabha polls, the word UP was removed from the Budget. Maharashtra defeated them and its name was struck off. They lost in Haryana and turned their back on its very existence...," he said.
     Rohtak MP Deepender Singh Hooda said it was a "disappointing Budget". Farmers and the poor, who were looking for relief in this Budget, have not got anything, he said.
     JJP leader and Haryana's former deputy chief minister Dushyant Chautala described the Budget as "a management Budget" to save the Central government.
     He claimed that the Union Budget focuses only on Andhra Pradesh and Bihar while Haryana has been completely ignored.
     He alleged that "this is the worst budget ever".
     Indian National Lok Dal secretary general Abhay Singh Chautala claimed that nothing has been given for Haryana in the Budget "due to which the people of the state are disappointed".

(This story has not been edited by THE WEEK and is auto-generated from PTI)