Hyderabad: Telangana state Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao on Saturday told senior officials that the state budget should be formulated only after defining “livelihood” in Telangana State.
He said the basis for formulating this year’s budget should be: “Where is Telangana today and where it will be after five years.”
Mr Rao said: “We should know firstly the issues that help us in our economic growth. Officials should concentrate on working out modalities and ways and means to increase growth.”
He said: “Having been elected as Chief Minister, I have been thinking what best I can do for the people. Preparation of budget should be preceded only after there is abundant clarity. The process should begin after the people who matter in its preparation make up their mindset.”
He further said: “We should work out our advantages, disadvantages, strengths, weaknesses and the socio-economic pattern. We should have a clear assessment of what all money we are likely to get in the next five years and how we are going to spend it.”
He said while preparing the budget estimate for irrigation, those concerned should take into consideration the money the government spent in the past four years and what it was likely to spend this year as well as in the coming five years.
Maintaining that getting required clearances for all irrigation projects from Government of India was a great achievement, he told officials that this should reflect in the budget.
While giving the example of sheep distribution, and how it can be taken forward, he stressed on the need to encourage fisheries and the handloom sector to attract the international market.
Mentioning about the power sector, Mr Chandrasekhar Rao said Telangana state was number one in per capita power consumption. He suggested that officials preparing the budget see how Kaleshwaram could be marketed as a tourist spot as well as pilgrimage centre and to see that Triveni Sangamam there becomes a best tourist spot.
He asked officials to work out modalities for modernising agriculture, including research facilities in universities and to also take into consideration how the concept of food processing units can be taken forward.
He asked officials to examine how best the state can take advantage of private universities to improve the education sector and frame rules for starting private universities in such a way that the state can attract students who otherwise prefer other states and abroad.
Touching on the health sector, he said there was need for planning to make Telangana a healthy state and bring in reforms with a human angle. He asked authorities preparing the budget to make estimates about industrial requirements and the type of infrastructure needed.
