Tripura Chief Minister Biplab Kumar Deb said that the "deficit free budget" presented on Tuesday, his government's first, was intended to make the state "self-reliant".
Thanking Prime Minister Narendra Modi for providing financial aid to the state, Deb told the media on Tuesday night that the previous Left Front government always presented deficit budgets.
"Covering the previous Left Front government's budget deficit, our Deputy Chief Minister Jishnu Dev Varma today (Tuesday) tabled a budget in the house considering the interests of all section of people including tribals, scheduled caste, other backward community, youths, women and others," he said.
Deb said that the Prime Minister and Finance Minister helped the state by providing additional fund to implement the recommendation of the Seventh Central Pay Commission for the Tripura government employees and pensioners.
"The budget also allocated funds for upgradation of academic infrastructure. The previous Left Front government never wanted to make Tripura economically self-determining," said Deb, adding that the the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) led alliance government would fulfill the Prime Minister's promise to bring HIRA (Highway, Internet, Road, Airway) in Tripura.
Dev Varma, who also holds the finance portfolio, on Tuesday, presented a Rs 16,387.21 crore tax-free, zero-deficit budget for financial year 2018-19.
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--IANS
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