| Rio plea to hasten peace | ||
| OUR CORRESPONDENT | ||
Kohima, July 8 : Nagaland chief minister Neiphiu Rio proposed no fresh taxes despite presenting a deficit budget of Rs 493.33 crore for the year 2009-10 in the Assembly today. Rio, who also holds the finance portfolio, said the state government was expecting tax collection of Rs 320.95 crore as against the budget estimate of Rs 259.48 crore last year. “This represents a growth of 23.69 per cent,” he added. The chief minister said there has been a substantial increase in tax collection over the years. “However, our tax revenue continues to be far below the five per cent of GSDP and the Planning Commission feels Nagaland should strive to improve its revenue collection,” he said. Rio said current year’s transaction is estimated to result in a deficit of Rs 22.02 crore. However, because of the estimated negative opening balance of Rs 471.31 crore, the year 2009-10 is estimated to close with a negative balance of Rs 493.33 crore. The increase in the state’s annual plan outlay to Rs 1,500 crore from Rs 1,200 crore in 2008-09 reflects a substantial growth of 25 per cent. Rio said this would help fund the increasing developmental needs of the state and infuse growth. Rio said the need for better management of finances is of paramount importance because even now 94 per cent of the total expenditure is funded by central transfers and borrowings. To overcome this, the government would have to give more thought to finding out ways to increase the state’s revenue besides checking leakage of government revenue, he added. The chief minister in his budget speech also called upon the Centre and the Naga nationalist groups to hasten the peace process through mutual understanding of each other’s positions and through a spirit of accommodation. “Both parties must be prepared to move away from their respective rigid stands,” Rio said. He urged the Naga militant groups to listen to the voice of the people and stop bloodshed and extortion, stating that Naga leaders should start thinking and acting as Naga leaders and not as tribal or factional leaders for effectively and collectively putting forward the common Naga cause. “It is of utmost historical importance that we seize the opportunity offered by the current ceasefire situation and take forward the Naga political issue to its logical conclusion,” the chief minister said. Stating that the government would continue with its efforts to increase productivity in agriculture and allied sectors, Rio said besides augmentation in micro-credit, empowerment of farmers and value addition, more focus would be given to agri-product marketing committee and agri-link roads. He said a state-level committee headed by the agricultural production commissioner had been formed to assess the situation arising out of delayed monsoon and scanty rainfall in the state, PTI report says. |
Deficit, but no fresh tax in budget
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