Union Budget 2017-18 is “a mixed bag”: Naveen Patnaik

Bhubaneswar:(ONT Bureau) 1/2/17:Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Wednesday said the Union Budget 2017-18 is “a mixed bag” and falls “short of expectations” on many issues as not much has been done to address the adverse impact of demonetisation.

“People at large took the brunt of impact of demonetisation and I was expecting something spectacular for the common man in the Union Budget. However, the Union Budget 2017-18 is a mixed bag and falls short of expectations on many counts.

“Specific concerns of Odisha specially relating to development of KBK region, opening of bank branches in un-banked Gram Panchayats and meeting the developmental aspirations of Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe community have not been addressed,” he said.

Noting the scheme-related transfers to the States have been proposed to increase at a meagre rate of 5.5 percent, he said that in real terms, there is no increase at all, while allocations for schemes relating to rural roads, rural drinking water, education, mid-day-meal programme and urban development are almost stagnant.