Govt targets Rs 1.2 lakh cr worth budget for 2027-28 to boost development

In absence of elected Local Bodies, grants to be crucial

Sanjeev Pargal

JAMMU, Oct 1: With Legislature session ending, the Government is now all set to expedite the process of revised estimates of budget for current financial year of 2026-27 and next year's budget for 2027-28 which will be presented in the Assembly either in the month of February. This will be Chief Minister Omar Abdullah's third consecutive budget as he also holds charge of the Finance Department.

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Official sources told the Excelsior that the budget for 2026-27 stood at Rs 1,13,767 crore while it was Rs 1,12,310 crore for 2025-26. These two budgets were presented in the House by Omar Abdullah after formation of political Government in Jammu and Kashmir. Last budget to be presented in the Parliament was for the financial year of 2024-25 and it was to the tune of Rs 1,18,728 crore.

``The Revised Estimates for the budget are likely to be finalized shortly and then the process for annual budget for 2027-28 will gather momentum including meetings with the senior officers of the Union Finance Ministry,'' they said.

The UT Government is expected to target Rs 1.20 lakh crore budget for 2026-27 to further give pace to development but all this will depend on expenditure during current fiscal year and own resources of the Government which are also considered to be crucial, they added.

Sources pointed out that though the elected Local Bodies including Panchayats and Municipalities besides the District Development Councils (DDCs) and Block Development Councils (BDCs) are not in place for quite some time now, the Central Government has been releasing due grants to them to some extent, a result of which their works are not hampered. The UT Government has also been contributing to the funds from its own resources for development of rural areas.

However, with an early election to the Local Bodies unlikely, it will be seen whether the Central Government goes ahead with the grants to them continuously.

As Jammu and Kashmir remained under the Central rules from 2018 to 2024, several budgets of the State/UT were presented in the Parliament. However, it was in February 2025 that Omar Abdullah presented the UT's budget in the Legislature followed by 2026. Budget session of the Assembly generally commences in February.

Few days back, the Finance Department had directed all the Administrative Departments to begin preparations for the 2027-28 budget and Revised Estimates of 2026-27, setting a strict deadline of October 31, 2026, for the submission of estimates to the Civil Secretariat.

To meet this target, the Department had set strict internal deadlines.