Rs 7,660 crore additional grant for 2003-04

The Lok Sabha approved a sum of Rs 7,660.21 crore as extra spending by the government in 2003-04, including Rs 2,300 crore to meet the losses of Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd because of rural telephony and village public telephones.

The second batch of Supplementary Demands for Grants for 2003-04 was passed by the House along with the relevant Appropriation Bill after Finance Minister Jaswant Singh said the government was committed to providing adequate resources for rural development and Sarva Shiksha Abhiyaan, the education-for-all project.

The supplementary demands include 42 grants of various ministries but a cash outgo of only Rs 4,887.91 crore as the remaining Rs 2,771.96 crore will be met through savings, enhanced receipts and recoveries by various ministries.

Singh said the Budget had already provided Rs 2,000 crore for universal education and an additional Rs 801 crore to meet the requirement of the human resource development ministry for this purpose.