Siddu's Budget has something for all; big push for guarantees

NT Correspondents

Bengaluru: Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah who holds the finance portfolio, stuck to his core philosophy of ‘Sarvarigu Samapalu, Sarvarigu Samabalu’(an equal life for all, an equal share for all) as he doled it out big for the Ahinda communities (backward classes, minorities, SCs and STs) in the state Budget 2023-24 even while ensuring that the capital city, Bengaluru received more than its due share - a whopping Rs 45,000 crore for projects including new Metro lines.

The bulk of the fund allocation went for the implementation of the five poll guarantees for which Siddaramaiah, presenting a record 14th Budget on Friday, set aside a full Rs 52,000 crore so that the schemes are implemented in toto .

This was understandable considering the opposition criticism of the ‘conditions; imposed by the government to ‘limit’ the scheme. The total budget outlay is a staggering Rs 3.27 lakh crore.

The CM announced a plethora of new projects and schemes to keep all sections happy-a new development board for Christians, a film city project in his home constituency Varuna in Mysuru, an insurance facility for gig workers, setting up of more dialysis centres across the state, a new state education polity to counter the NEP of the BJP-led Central government and a Black Buck Conservation Reserve in Bidar.

The CM also announced that his pet project, the Indira canteens to provide subsidized food, will be relaunched with a new menu for which Rs 100 crore has been set aside. Rajiv Gandhi University of Health Sciences will set up a new medical college at Kanakapura in Ramanagar district, the home terrain of Deputy CM DK Shivakumar.