Farm happy, factory not

Agriculture, horticulture and dairy have got "pinpointed" focus in the Punjab budget, according to Punjab Agricultural University Vice-Chancellor Manjit Singh Kang.

He appreciated the fact that agriculture received an allocation of Rs 200 crore, higher by 48 percent than the previous year's allocation.

"Apart from the funding received from the central government under the National Horticultural Mission, Rs 100 crore had been allocated to horticulture. Punjab has a great potential in producing high-value crops such as fruits and vegetables. Under this approach, modern markets have been proposed in Hoshiarpur, Jalandhar, Ludhiana and Muktasar," he said.

Agencies add: The industrial community of Punjab was disappointed with the budget for not taking enough steps.

"We had expected the government to take decisions on infrastructure development and announce freight subsidy for industry. But the budget does not sound positive in this regard," Engineering Export Promotion Council Regional Chairman SC Ralhan said here.

Apparel Exporters Associations of India President Sanjiv Gupta said the government should have come forward to give relief to exporters from the increasing cost of production by compensating them for freight charges.