Parliament Discusses Union Budget 2024-25 and Jammu and Kashmir Budget
The Indian Parliament is continuing its discussion on the Union Budget 2024-25 and the Jammu and Kashmir Budget 2024-25, both presented on July 23. Key figures like Union Ministers Gajendra Singh Shekhawat, Jitendra Singh, Arjun Ram Meghwal, and Kirtivardhan Singh will lay papers on the table today. Union Minister Sukanta Majumdar is expected to make a statement regarding the implementation of recommendations from the 250th report of the parliamentary standing committee on Home Affairs.
Both Houses of Parliament began discussing the Union Budget on July 24. Opposition leaders, including former Finance Minister and Congress MP P Chidambaram, criticized the budget for being discriminatory and lacking vision. Chidambaram highlighted unemployment as a major challenge, citing a 9.2% unemployment rate in June 2024. He questioned the effectiveness of the Production Linked Incentives (PLI) scheme in creating jobs.
On the other hand, BJP members like Radha Mohan Das Aggarwal and Biplab Kumar Deb praised the government’s achievements and economic growth projections. Aggarwal mentioned the success of the Jan Dhan Yojana in providing banking services, while Deb noted the Economic Survey’s GDP growth estimate of 6.5% to 7% for 2024-25.
Trinamool Congress MP Abhishek Banerjee criticized the budget for lacking clarity and vision, alleging it was designed to satisfy BJP’s coalition partners. The budget session, which started on July 22, will end on August 12.
Doubts Revealed
Parliament -: Parliament is a place where important people called Members of Parliament (MPs) meet to make laws and discuss important issues for the country.
Union Budget -: The Union Budget is a plan made by the government about how it will earn and spend money for the whole country in the coming year.
Jammu and Kashmir Budget -: This is a special budget plan for the region of Jammu and Kashmir, which is a part of India, showing how money will be spent there.
Gajendra Singh Shekhawat -: He is an important person in the Indian government, working as a minister responsible for water resources.
Sukanta Majumdar -: He is a politician from the BJP party and represents the people of his area in Parliament.
P Chidambaram -: He is a senior leader from the Congress party and has been a finance minister in the past.
BJP -: BJP stands for Bharatiya Janata Party, which is one of the major political parties in India.
Opposition leaders -: These are leaders from political parties that are not currently in power and often question or criticize the government’s actions.
Unemployment -: Unemployment means not having a job even though you want to work and are looking for a job.
Economic growth projections -: These are estimates or guesses about how much the country’s economy will grow in the future.
Budget session -: This is a special time when Parliament meets to discuss and approve the budget plans for the country.
