Plan, CMP schemes in focus

Budget support to Plan up 20.4%.

Finance Minister P Chidambaram has announced a hefty 20.4 per cent increase in gross budgetary support of Rs 1,74,725 crore for the annual Plan expenditure, up from Rs 1,43,497 crore for 2005-06.

The total expenditure for the next fiscal year is estimated to increase by 10.86 per cent from Rs 5,08,705 crore in 2005-06 to Rs 5,63,991 crore in 2006-07.

The increase in allocation is on account of major increases towards flagship programmes ""which have seen a 43.2 per cent increase in allocation for 2006-07.

The eight flagship programmes include the Sarva Siksha Abhiyan, Mid-Day Meal Scheme, Rajiv Gandhi Drinking Water Mission, Total Sanitation Campaign, National Rural Health Mission, Integrated Child Development Services, National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme and Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission.

The Budget estimates (BE) for 2006-07 also show a dramatic rise in almost all the major heads barring non-Plan expenditure. This reflects the effort on the part of the finance ministry to keep non-Plan expenditure low.

Non-Plan expenditure is projected to rise 7.22 per cent from Rs 3,64,914 crore in 2005-06 to Rs 3,91,263 crore in 2006-07. On the other hand, Plan expenditure for 2006-07 is estimated at Rs 1,72,727 crore, a whopping 20.12 per cent rise over the Rs 1,43,791 crore that will be spent in 2005-06.

The increase in the BE for 2006-07 marks a 20.3 per cent increase when compared to the BE for the current fiscal year.

Central assistance for states and Union Territories is set to rise 13.42 per cent from Rs 3,65,38 crore in 2005-06 to Rs 4,14,43 crore next year. The jump for 2006-07 marks a 25 per cent increase when compared to the BE for the current fiscal year.

The budgetary support for central Plans is also projected to climb 22.40 per cent from Rs 1,07,253 crore in 2005-06 to Rs 1,31,284 crore in the next fiscal year. The increase in the BE for 2006-07 marks a 18.93 per cent increase when compared with the BE for the current fiscal year.

There has been a tremendous increase in the central Plan allocations as well. From Rs 2,05,338 crore in 2005-06 to Rs 2,54,041 crore in 2006-07, marking an increase of 23.71 per cent. The increase in the BE for 2006-07 is 20.25 per cent when compared to the BE for the current fiscal year.

The Finance Minister announced an increase of 9.8 per cent under rural development heads. From Rs 14,241 crore as revised estimate in 2005-06 it has now been increased to Rs 15,644 crore for the next fiscal year.

Allocation for agriculture and allied activities has also been increased by 25 per cent to Rs 7,385.57 crore compared with Rs 5,907 crore estimated in the revised estimates for the current year 2005-06.