The interim budget 2024-25 on Thursday allocated Rs 202868.70 crore to the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) with the highest share of funds going to the paramilitary forces like Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), Border Security Force (BSF) and Central Industrial Secular Force (CISF), showing priority on internal security and border guarding.
The 2023-24 budget allocation to the MHA, helmed by Union Home Minister Amit Shah, was Rs 196034.94 crore.
While Rs 132345.47 crore was given to the police in 2024-25 under which the paramilitary forces come, Rs 37277.74 crore was given to Jammu and Kashmir, which became Union Territory after the abrogation of Article 370 and bifurcation of the state in 2019.
Ladakh got Rs 5958 crore, Andaman and Nicobar Islands Rs 5866.37 crore, Chandigarh Rs 5862.62 crore, Puducherry Rs 3269.00 crore, Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Dama and Diu Rs 2648.97 crore and Rs 1490.10 crore was given to Lakshadweep and Rs 1168.01 to Delhi.
A sum of Rs 1248.91 crore was given to cabinet under which the expenditure on council of ministers, cabinet secretariat, Prime Minister's Office, hospitality and entertainment of the government come.
Among the paramilitary forces, Rs 32809.65 crore was given to the CRPF from a revised estimate of Rs 31389.04 crore in 2023-24, Rs 25027.52 crore to the BSF (Rs 25038.68 crore in 2023-24), Rs 13655.84 crore to CISF (Rs 12929.85 crore), Rs 8253.53 crore to ITBP (Rs 8203.68 crore in 2023-24), Rs 8485.77 crore to SSB (Rs 8435.68 crore in 2023-24) and Rs 7368.33 crore to the Assam Rifles (Rs 7276.29 crore in 2023-24).
The CRPF is mostly deployed for internal security duties, operations against terrorists in Jammu and Kashmir, Naxals in central and eastern India and the insurgents in the Northeast.
The BSF mostly guards the Indo-Pakistan and Indo-Bangladesh borders besides it is also deployed internal security duties. The CISF guards vital installations like nuclear plants, airports, metro networks.
The Indo Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) guards the Sino-Indian border, the Shashastra Seema Bal (SSB) guards the Indo-Nepal and Indo-Bhutan borders, the Assam Rifles protects India's border with Myanmar.
While the Intelligence Bureau (IB) has been allocated Rs 3195.09 crore (Rs 3268.94 crore in 2023-24), Rs 11177.50 crore to the Delhi Police (Rs 11940.33 crore in 2023-24), Rs 506.32 crore to the Special Protection Group (SPG) (Rs 446.83 crore in 2023-24).
The IB is India's internal intelligence agency, the Delhi Police guards the national capital and the SPG provides the security to the prime minister.
The budget allocated Rs 3,199.62 crore for security related expenditure and Special Infrastructure Scheme for Left Wing Extremist Areas, Rs 335.00 crore for Border Area Development Programme, Rs 214.44 crore for safe city projects, and Rs 330.00 crore for Land Port Authority of India.
