Sanjeev Pargal
JAMMU, Mar 4: The Government has decided to come up with a White Paper on financial health of Jammu and Kashmir especially in reference to current financial year of 2014-15 when the State was faced with acute financial crisis in the wake of blockade of funds by the Centre even as it would seek hike in its Annual Plan and all other Centrally Sponsored Schemes for the next financial year of 2015-16.
Official sources told the Excelsior that the Government has decided to bring a White Paper on fiscal position of the State at present and the steps required to meet the financial crisis including the Central help and mopping up of own resources of the State. It has asked the Finance and Planning and Development Departments of the State to furnish all details of fiscal position especially the relevant data to prepare the White Paper, which could be either tabled in the Assembly or reflected in the budget.
Sources said the preparation of White Paper was necessitated as the State during current financial year of 2014-15 has been given very less funds from total of Rs 11,900 crores including Rs 7300 crores worth Annual Plan, Rs 600 crores worth Prime Minister’s Re-construction Plan and Rs 4000 crores of Centrally Sponsored Schemes.
“The White Paper would clear the entire financial scenario of Jammu and Kashmir not only before the public representatives but before all the people. Besides this would also help the Government understand the financial scenario better and project it before the Government of India before seeking early release of pending funds of current year and hike in funding for next fiscal year of 2015-16, the budget for which would be presented by the Government in second half of March,” they said.
Pointing out that Finance and Planning and Development Departments of the State have started the task of preparing the White Paper apart from next year’s budget, they said: “everything would be in place well in time notwithstanding the shortage of time as the Finance and Planning and Development Departments had already done vast exercise to know the requirements of all Departments for next financial year”.
The exercise already done by the Finance and Planning and Development Departments during Governor’s rule to hold mandatory inter-action with about 25 Departments to ascertain their needs and requirements for next financial year would help the Government to finalize the budget. The exercise was albeit done for taking Vote-on-Account for 2015-16. However, with the PDP-BJP Government deciding to present full budget the exercise done earlier would prove helpful to both the Departments to prepare the budget.
According to sources, only once complete data is prepared by the Finance and Planning and Development Departments in the next few days that the Government would take a call on the hike to be sought in Annual Plan and other Centrally Sponsored Schemes for next financial year of 2015-16. In addition to this, the Government was soon expected to take up the matter with Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley and NITI Aayog the demand for release of its pending funds and hike in the funds for next financial year.
It may be mentioned here that the previous Planning Commission had approved total funding of Rs 11900 crores for Jammu and Kashmir for current financial year of 2014-15 including Rs 7300 crores Annual Plan (equivalent to what it was in 2013-14), Rs 600 crores under PMRP and Rs 4000 crores under the Centrally Sponsored Schemes but majority of funds haven’t been released despite the fact that this was the last month of current financial year and the State was faced with acute financial crisis.
Governor NN Vohra had during the Governor’s Rule personally sought the intervention of Jaitley for securing release of pending funds of the State after which Rs 170 crores worth Special Plan Assistance and some amount under Other Heads was released.
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