Budget 2021: Ignored Telangana suffers double whammy

HYDERABAD:  Telangana received two major jolts on Monday. First, it did not receive any project or State-specific funds in Union Budget 2021-22. On the other hand, the “unprofessional” report of the Fifteenth Finance Commission (FFC), tabled in Parliament on Monday, came as a double whammy. 
Adding insult to injury, the Budget benefited Andhra Pradesh with more allocations, while the FFC recommended more tax devolution to Gujarat. 

“The performing State of Telangana has been ignored completely,” is the view of the officials. 
“This is an election Budget. The Union Finance Minister focussed mainly on the States which are going to polls shortly. The Union Budget allocated nothing to Telangana,” an official pointed out. 

Though, the Centre once again ignored the State, there is no official reaction on the Union Budget 
either from Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao or Finance Minister T Harish Rao or any other leader of the ruling TRS. 

No word on TS in Nirmala’s Budget speech

Though, the State government wanted the Centre to scrap the cesses and surcharges, the Centre imposed fresh cess on petrol and diesel. However, as requested by Finance Minister T Harish Rao, the Centre allowed additional borrowing limit of up to 4.5 per cent for the States. TRS working president and IT Minister KT Rama Rao wrote several letters to the Union Finance Minister seeking funds for augmenting the drainage system in civic bodies, funds for Neo Metro for Warangal and funds for textile sector,  but there was no response from the latter. 

“The Union Minister announced seven textile parks. But it remains to be seen whether the State will get any textile park or not,” the official sources said. They also pointed out that the metro rail projects and the road projects were sanctioned mostly to the States where Assembly elections are due. The Union Finance Minister, however, mentioned Hyderabad but there was no word on Telangana in her speech. 

“Many of our cities have various research institutions, universities and colleges supported by the Government of India. For example, Hyderabad has around 40 such major institutions. In nine such cities, we will create formal umbrella structures so that these institutions can have better synergy, while also retaining their internal autonomy. A Glue Grant will be set aside for this purpose,” the FM said. 

The Centre allocated Rs 329.19 crore for Atomic Minerals Directorate for Exploration and Research in Hyderabad, proposed Rs 53.80 crore for Andhra Pradesh and Telangana Tribal Universities. However, it may be noted that the Centre revised the Budget for the Tribal Universities from Rs 8.30 crore in 2020-21 to Rs 4 crore in the revised the estimates. The National Fisheries Development Board in Hyderabad got Rs 23.84 crore and the National Institute of Rural Development and Panchayat Raj, Hyderabad got Rs 124 crore in 2021-22 Budget.