BJP's Budget 2024 Gambit: Wooing Allies, Snubbing Rivals?

With PM Modi's Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP) relying on its allies to secure a majority in general elections, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman's union budget focused on Bihar and Andhra Pradesh is seen as a calculated effort to strengthen its ties with the Janata Dal-United (JDU) and Telugu Desam Party (TDP), key partners in the National Democratic Alliance coalition (NDA).

In the budget, Sitharaman, under the Modi government, has announced a range of developmental projects for Bihar and Andhra Pradesh, while other states received less attention. For Bihar, Sitharaman unveiled a Rs 26,000 crore package, including Rs 21,400 crore for power projects, such as a new 2400 MW power plant at Pirpainti. The state will also see the construction of new airports, medical colleges, and sports infrastructure. The Centre will expedite Bihar's requests for external assistance from multilateral development banks.

Similarly, Sitharaman declared about Rs 15,000 crore for Andhra Pradesh to develop its capital, Amaravati, addressing a key demand of the state government, which had sought support for the construction and development of Amaravati as the sole capital.

Interestingly, Madhya Pradesh, where the BJP secured a landslide victory by winning all 29 Lok Sabha seats, didn't receive significant allocations in this budget. However, the heavily agriculture-dependent state is expected to benefit from the release of 109 high-yielding and climate-resilient crop varieties and the initiation of one crore farmers into natural farming over the next two years. Despite these measures, the state lacks direct announcements like those for Bihar and Andhra Pradesh.

Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath's Uttar Pradesh, where the BJP faced a significant setback, losing 27 seats compared to 2019, also saw minimal attention in Sitharaman's budget speech. No major package was announced for the state, reflecting the impact of election results.

Notably, this time, Odisha received attention from Sitharaman highlighting the state's scenic beauty, temples, monuments, craftsmanship, wildlife sanctuaries, natural landscapes, and pristine beaches. The government will assist in developing these tourism assets.

Without mentioning the conflict-ridden Manipur, the Finance Ministry has budgeted Rs 5,892 crore for the north-east region, a 113 per cent increase from the revised estimate of 2022-23. Over 100 branches of India Post Payment Bank will be set up in the region to expand banking services. Additionally, Rs 2.66 lakh crore has been allocated for rural development, including rural infrastructure. Sitharaman also announced the Pradhan Mantri Janjatiya Unnat Gram Abhiyan to improve the socio-economic condition of tribal communities. This initiative will cover 63,000 villages, benefiting five crore tribal people, indirectly aiding the north-east.

The government has allocated  Rs 11,500 crore for flood control in Bihar, with additional assistance for Assam, Uttarakhand, and Himachal. However, Trinamool Congress (TMC) leader and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee criticised the budget, questioning the lack of support for Bengal floods and labelling it as an "anti-people budget." The Trinamool Congress (TMC) also criticized the budget for not mentioning any special benefits for Opposition-ruled states such as West Bengal, Telangana, and Punjab, referring to it as an ‘Andhra-Bihar’ and ‘kursi bachao’ budget.

In response to accusations of discrimination among states, Sitharaman in a press conference stated, “If the name of a state is not mentioned in the budget, it doesn't mean that they don't get anything at all. Every state gets what they propose for or what the schemes reach out for.”

Kapil Yadav

BW Reporters The author is a trainee correspondent with BW Businessworld