Budget for rural infra, NGOs tell government

Ask for deployment of money generated from auctioning of 3G

trithesh

Trithesh Nandan | February 21, 2011



As finance minister Pranab Mukherjee gears up to present the union budget on February 28, non-government organisations Centre for Budget and Governance Accountability (CBGA) & Oxfam India have propsed that the government should invest money generated from non-tax revenue in 2010-11 on funding rural infrastructure in the upcoming budget.

In a release on Monday, the CBGA & Oxfam said the government generated Rs 71,262 crore on the auction of 3G spectrum and broadband wireless access (BWA) in 2010-11, which it should invest to meet the deficit in social infrastructure in the rural areas.

“The additional amount, hence, could be used to fund rural infrastructural gaps of the country,” said Subrat Das, executive director, CBGA.

The report by CBGA points out that over the year the government has neglected rural areas due to which there is huge infrastructure deficit. 

“There is a shortfall of 22.36 lakh houses for BPL families, 1.25 lakh anganwadi centres, 20,407 school buildings and 4,504 primary health centres (PHC) in the country,” notes the report.

“The forthcoming budget is an opportunity to realise the dream of inclusive development in India and to connect the two India’s by mobilising additional resources from the rich in order to invest in the poor and marginalised so that they too can participate in and benefit from the growth that others in India are enjoying,” said Nisha Agrawal, CEO, Oxfam India.

“Under the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY), an additional 1.21 lakh km roads need to be constructed to connect 20,836 habitations hitherto unconnected,” the report added.

Prime minister Manmohan Singh has from time to time stressed on the need to correct the leaky infrastructure which needs an investment of more than $1 trillion if the country’s current economic growth rate is to be maintained in the 12th five-year plan (2012-2017).

Comments

 

Other News

When algorithms decide and children die

The images have not left me, of dead and wounded children being carried in the arms of the medics and relatives to the ambulances and hospitals. On February 28, at the start of Operation Epic Fury, cruise missiles struck the Shajareh Tayyebeh school – officially named a girls’ school, in Minab,

The economics of representation: Why women in power matter

India’s democracy has grown in scale, but not quite in balance. Women today are active participants in elections, influencing outcomes in ways that were not as visible earlier. Yet their presence in legislative institutions continues to lag behind. The Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam was meant to addres

India will be powerful, not aggressive: Bhaiyyaji

India is poised to emerge as a global power but will remain rooted in its civilisational ethos of non-aggression and harmony, former RSS General Secretary Suresh `Bhaiyyaji` Joshi has said.   He was speaking at the launch of “Rashtrabhav,” a book by Ravindra Sathe

AI: Code, Control, Conquer

India today stands at a critical juncture in the area of artificial intelligence. While the country is among the fastest adopters of AI in the world, it remains heavily reliant on technologies developed elsewhere. This paradox, experts warn, cannot persist if India seeks technological sovereignty.

RBI pauses to assess inflation risks, policy transmission

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has begun the new fiscal year with a calibrated pause, keeping the repo rate unchanged at 5.25 per cent in its April Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meeting. The decision, taken unanimously, reflects a shift from aggressive policy action to cautious observation after a signi

New pathways for tourism growth

Traditionally, India’s tourism policy has been based on three main components: the number of visitors, building tourist attractions and providing facilities for tourists. Due to the increase in climate-related issues and environmental destruction that occurred over previous years, policymakers have b


Archives

Current Issue

Opinion

Facebook Twitter Google Plus Linkedin Subscribe Newsletter

Twitter