Budgetary support raised by 19%

The gross budgetary support for 2006-07 has been raised 19 per cent to nearly Rs 171,000 crore (Rs 1710 billion) from Rs 143,497 crore (Rs 1434.97 billion) in the current fiscal.

But this is lower than the Rs 183,000 crore (Rs 1830 billion) sought by the planning commission for the year.

"Going by the final GBS figure, the requirements of some social welfare ministries will not be substantially met as had been proposed by the planning commission," an official told Business Standard.

The planning commission had earlier proposed a budgetary support of Rs 6,500 crore (Rs 65 billion), Rs 16,500 crore (Rs 165 billion), Rs 9,400 crore (Rs 94 billion) and Rs 8,000 crore (Rs 80 billion) for the National Urban Renewal Mission, Employment Guarantee Act, National Rural Health Mission and National Rural Roads Programme, respectively.

Sources said the finance ministry might not meet the expectations of the plan body. The UPA chief Sonia Gandhi had earlier written a letter to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh expressing her concern over inadequate allocation for social welfare ministries.

The allocated GBS is also unlikely to meet the Rs 50,000-crore (Rs 500 billion) allocation goal set by the Left for social sector schemes.

The prime minister's office had earlier directed the finance ministry to meet the GBS requirement of Rs 1,79,000 crore (Rs 1790 billion) and to find out ways for resource allocation.

The additional allocation of Rs 6,000 crore (Rs 60 billion) that the Plan panel was demanding to fund flagship social sector programmes of the government was a bone of contention between the planning commission and the finance ministry.