Patna: Feb. 27, 2007
Amidst deafening noise and frequent interruption by the opposition leaders, the state government on Tuesday presented the state's 2007-08 budget to the tune of Rs. 33,527 crore with provisions for more appointments of teachers, policemen, doctors, engineers, and legal and agricultural advisors.Deputy Chief Minister Sushil Kumar Modi continued to read from the 64 page budget proposal in the midst of slogan-shouting and demand for the resignation of Chief Minister Nitish Kumar. The commotion came to an end only with the end of Modi's presentation of the budget.The budget makes provision for providing laptop computers to the ministers and legislators – a plan originally conceived by the previous Rabri government that never saw the light of the day in view of the impending Assembly elections in 2005.Conducive to the state's educational environment, the budget makes several provisions for high school students including hiring of new teachers, school uniforms, free bikes to the 9th and 10th grade students, mid-day meal, among other schemes to the tune of several crore rupees.The budget further makes provisions for setting up of new industries, power plants, handloom, road construction, bottling, farming, horticulture, pisciculture, dairy, chicken farming, software park, tourism, housing for homeless, and development and improvement of cultural centers in the state.Rabri Devi, the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) leader and leader of the Opposition in Bihar Assembly, reacting on the budget, called it nothing more than a bundle of lies and promises 'not meant to be kept'."This is a budget for the rich class as it fails to address some major issues affecting the poor and backwards of the state," she said.
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