Delhi Budget directionless, without focus and vision: Mukhi

New Delhi, Apr 17 (UNI) Leader of the Opposition in the Delhi Legislative Assembly Jagdish Mukhi today described the Delhi Budget for 2007-2008 as totally 'directionless and lacking focus' and one which would fuel inflation levels in the capital.

Initiating the discussion on the Delhi Budget for 2007-2008 in the Delhi Legislative Assembly, Dr Mukhi said,''the Budget for 2007-2008 neither has any vision nor any concrete policy. To put it in a nutshell, it lacks focus and is directionless''.

He said the budget, with an expenditure of Rs 18560 crore, is less than the total expenditure of Rs 20986 crore during last year.

Like all the previous budgets of the Delhi Government, this year's budget too has a high non-plan expenditure, he said.

''What this amounts to is that the tax revenue earned by levying taxes on the common man is being spent on non-productive expenditure. If tax revenues of the Government have increased, it should have been spent on plan expenditure,''Dr Mukhi said.

Pointing to a huge increase in non-plan spending in previous years from the initial estimates, he said last year, the non-plan expenditure increased from the initial estimate of Rs 9225 crore in the budget to Rs 15716 crore as per revised estimates.

''Even if one were to assume that the non-plan expenditure will not increase from last year's level, even them a meagre amount of Rs 3000 crore is left for plan expenditure,''he said.

On the Government's claim for a 14 per cent increase in its tax revenues, he said 30 per cent of the tax revenue was spent in repayment of huge debts owed by the state Government.

On the provision in the budget to build 53 underground reservoirs in Delhi, Dr Mukhi said it would not solve problems of water scarcity.

''The problem of water supply would only be solved by increasing the water supply in Delhi,''he said.

On the Government's claim to provide free education to boys and girls from the weaker sections, Dr Mukhi said it was in 1995 under the rule of the BJP that Delhi became the first state in the country to provide free education in Government schools from class one to 12.

On the Budget promising to set up a multi modal transport system in the city, he said contrary to the claims, the present Congress Government had no contribution in phase 1 of the Metro.

''It is wrong on its part to take credit for the Metro, which was brought to Delhi through the efforts of the BJP Government in the state,''Dr Mukhi said.

The discussion on the budget would continue tomorrow.

UNI