Hyderabad: It’s more than three weeks since Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao set up 14 task forces to prepare the first Telangana Budget. However, only five of them could come out with reports so far.
KCR wanted officials to prepare “Telangana specific” budget proposals which should fulfil Telangana’s needs and set up the task forces on August 28. He asked them to come out with the reports by September 5 and prepare draft plans based on these reports by September 15.
Forget draft plans, the officials have failed to even come out with reports so far though the deadline has been extended twice. Officials are struggling to list out the needs and priorities of Telangana and are taking up extensive studies for the purpose by meeting experts and academicians.
The earlier budget proposals, drafted by finance minister Etela Rajender after holding meetings with ministers and officials as per convention was scrapped by KCR who said that it was a ‘routine budget’ which lacked Telangana orientation.
Only five task forces pertaining to agriculture, medical and health, welfare, finance and planning departments could prepare reports so far. However, the government is said to be upset with the report prepared by the welfare department and has asked it to do the exercise once again after considering fresh points.
The Chief Minister is so adamant about “Telan-gana orientation” this time that he met the Governor and sought his permission to delay the budget session by two more months if the situation demands.
The Chief Minister told the Governor that the budget proposals are not yet ready and may take some more time to be prepared fully.
He sought permission from the Governor to issue an ordinance to utilise the funds for the next two months starting October since the existing vote-on-account budget approved by the united Andhra Pradesh Asse-mbly expires on September 30 and the government cannot utilise even a single rupee from October 1, if the ordinance is not issued.
