New Delhi: The finance ministry has resumed work on the Union Budget and the Economic Survey in full swing, following indications from the Modi government that it is confident of returning to power.
The budget along with the survey is set to be presented in July, but there was a stalemate in policy-making due to the Lok Sabha elections.
Sources said that discussions have been initiated by senior officials, including secretaries and joint secretaries with other ministries and departments, especially with a focus on expenditure.
Two senior officials of the ministry on condition of anonymity said that there was a lull for a couple of months but the momentum has picked up in the last few days.
Another official added that Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his team are confident of a second term and top bureaucrats have been directed to continue with their work unlike in 2014 when it wasn’t clear if the United Progressive Alliance government would be voted back again.
“Prior to the last general elections, work had almost come to a halt in the finance ministry. There was almost no doubt that there will be a change in guard. However, this time the situation is different,” the official said.
Sources added that the focus once again will be on the social and rural sectors besides chalking out a roadmap of fiscal prudence.
“We have started work on Union Budget and the Economic Survey. There has to be some sort of continuity in the work and policies, and the ministry is looking into data and outcome of major policies, especially in agriculture and rural sector,” one of the officials told ThePrint.
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Challenges for new government
The Modi government has come under severe criticism for distress in the farm sector and not being able to create adequate jobs.
Earlier, in the interim budget, Railways and Coal Minister Piyush Goyal — in-charge of finance then — announced the Rs-75,000 crore Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi Yojana, which was aimed at 12 crore farmers holding cultivable land up to 2 hectares. Under the scheme, qualified farmers would receive Rs 6,000 per year in three installments.
The BJP in its manifesto, released in April, promised to extend the benefits of PM Kisan scheme to all farmers in the country. It has also promised to provide pensions to farmers, who qualify as small and marginal.
While the core team in the finance ministry will remain the same under Finance and Economic Affairs Secretary Subhash Chandra Garg, it will be the first Economic Survey under Chief Economic Adviser Krishnamurthy Subramanian.
Sources said that the Economic Survey could put out a detailed analysis and mapping of Ayushman Bharat — Modi government’s ambitious health scheme launched last year — and the disease pattern in the country.
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Wonderful. The economy needs the utmost, care and attention.