New Delhi, Jan 19: J&K today sought to protect the current year’s Plan outlay of Rs 6000 crore by augmenting the resources.
 At a pre-budget conference of State Finance Ministers held here today under the chairmanship of union Finance Minister, Pranab Mukherjee, J&K pleaded that in the current financial year the Consumer Price Index has behaved in an extremely abnormal fashion.
 "Apart from causing problems to the public at large, this has also necessitated release of DA installments in favour of the government employees and state pensioners much beyond the levels anticipated in the original budget estimates, thereby squeezing the development efforts of the state government.”
 "A similar phenomenon is apprehended during the next financial year and we intend to seek suitable growth in the plan outlay to take care of the immediate development needs,” the meeting was informed. “The state,” it was pleaded, “needs even more liberal central support than that made available in the current financial year”.
 “The double digit inflation, especially the increase in the price of food articles has posed multiple problems of administrative and financial nature to the government at the centre as also the governments in the states,” the meeting was informed. J&K, against this backdrop, suggested that in the next year’s Union Budget, this problem shall be upper most while dealing with the macro economic and fiscal policy issues. The state also sought special care of the centre for accelerating the pace attained during previous two years both on developmental fronts as well as implementing the annual plan.

Lastupdate on : Wed, 19 Jan 2011 21:30:00 Makkah time
Lastupdate on : Wed, 19 Jan 2011 18:30:00 GMT
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