Gross budget support may be up 15%

The finance ministry wants gross budgetary support for 2006-07 capped at a maximum of around Rs 1,25,000 crore, an increase of 15 per cent over the Rs 1,10,385 crore finalised for the present year.

Officials said the ministry was of the view that a 12 per cent increase in the GBS appeared feasible, keeping in mind a seven per cent increase in the Budgetary support and the present five per cent inflation.

"The allocation can at best be around 14-15 per cent higher after further curtailing the non-Plan expenditure," an official said, adding that areas such as establishment costs and stricter control of grants-in-aid were the ones that the finance ministry was looking into.

"There is a case for ensuring that the grants-in-aid are utilised. The grants can be held back and released only when those released earlier are utilised," an official said.

A final decision on Budgetary support is being left to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, in the wake of continued differences between the finance ministry and the Planning Commission on the issue.

A decision is expected by January 15. The Planning Commission had recommended that the Budgetary support for central schemes be enhanced by 35 per cent to around Rs 1,50,000 crore.

According to presentations made by various ministries to the Planning Commission, existing schemes like the National Rural Employment Guarantee Programme, National Urban Renewal Mission, National Rural Health Mission, the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan and the National Highways Development Programme will require an additional allocation of Rs 19,000 crore next year.

The rural development ministry has sought an additional Rs 6,000 crore for the National Rural Employment Guarantee Programme (NREGP), which was to be implemented in 200 most backward districts of the country next year.

The government has allocated Rs 10,000 crore for rural employment this year, which includes Rs 6,000 crore for the National Food for Work Programme (the precursor to NREGP) and Rs 4,000 crore for the Sampoorna Grameen Rozgar Yojana.

Similarly, allocation for the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan, an elementary education scheme, is expected to climb from Rs 7,156 crore this year to around Rs 11,000 crore during 2006-07, according to estimates prepared by the ministry of human resources development.

The cost of the scheme would be the highest next year and would start decreasing from 2007-08, officials said. In addition, Rs 3,100 crore have been provided for the mid-day meal scheme for schools this fiscal.

The government would have to provide an additional sum of at least Rs 3,500 crore for the National Urban Renewal Mission for the next fiscal, officials said. The Centre had allocated for Rs 5,500 crore for it during the current fiscal, which included a grant component of Rs 1,650 crore.

The urban development ministry had sought that the allocation be enhanced to Rs 16,000 crore in the second year, the officials said.

The health ministry sought an allocation of around Rs 4,000 crore for the National Rural Health Mission, officials said. During the current fiscal, the allocation for the ministry of health and family welfare had been increased by Rs 1,800 crore to finance various components of the health mission.