Congress today termed the Gujarat budget (2015-16) as a "document of failure", and said the BJP-led state government has failed to stand up to the expectations of the poor and downtrodden.
During his speech on the first day of the discussion on state budget in the Assembly, Leader of Opposition Shankarsinh Vaghela alleged the government has not addressed even a single problem being faced by the common man through the budget, which was presented before the House last month.
The budget, with an overall size of Rs 1,39,139 crore, did not introduce any new major programmes. It was the first full budget presented by the Anandi Patel government.
"This budget is a document of failure. The common man had very high expectations from this government. But, this budget failed to provide answer to any of their burning problems such as water, education, electricity, inflation, etc.," Vaghela said in his speech.
Taking a dig at BJP's slogan 'Sabka Saath Sabka Vikas', Vaghela said it was just a sentence which is aimed for elections and is not a concrete policy.
"Similarly, this government has floated various other slogans and schemes, such as 'Amrutam Yojna', 'Dudh Sanjeevani' and so on. I wonder if anyone cares to see if they are actually implemented," he said.
Referring to the budgetary provisions on Narmada Project, Vaghela said the project may drag on even after 20 years.
"For the last three years, more than Rs 9,000 crore is spent on this project each year. Despite that Narmada project is nowhere near completion. The whole project may not be completed even after 20 years," the Congress leader said.
He also took a swipe at the government over the provisions made in the budget for the ambitious 'Statue of Unity' project which envisages construction of a 182-metre tall statue of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel near Sadar Sarovar dam.
"Sardar Patel was a poor farmer's son. If he were alive, he would have opposed this waste of money for his statue. This government is using his name for their benefits. Otherwise, I remember that BJP leaders, including our present CM, have staged protests when Ahmedabad airport was named after Sardar Patel (during Congress' rule)," said Vaghela.
