CPI(M) stages protest against State Budget in Kalaburagi

Members of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) staged a protest outside the Deputy Commissioner’s office in Kalaburagi on Saturday, criticizing the State Budget presented by Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Friday.

The demonstration was led by district secretary K. Neela. Following the protest, party leaders, through the Deputy Commissioner, submitted a memorandum to the Prime Minister stating their objections to the Budget proposals.

Speaking on the occasion, Ms. Neela said that the ₹ 4.48 lakh crore State Budget, presented as a pro-people Budget aimed at development of all sections, actually favors private and corporate interests. He claimed that the budget imposes an additional burden of ₹ 1.34 lakh crore on the State in borrowing and reflects increasing dependence on loans to meet government expenditure.

The memorandum also criticized the State government for not showing any opposition to the labor laws introduced by the BJP-led Union government and for not addressing issues related to land acquisition carried out under the Karnataka Industrial Areas Development Board Act.

It was stated that the budget does not propose solutions for those affected by land acquisition or regularization of lands and forest lands cultivated under bagar hukum.

The party has expressed concern over the allocations for the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act scheme. He said although the sharing pattern between the Center and the State has changed to 60:40, the allocation for the Rural Development and Panchayat Raj Department has been reduced to ₹ 26,559 crore, which is ₹ 176 crore less than the previous year.

It was stated that this showed that commitment to employment guarantee programs in rural areas was weakening.

“The budget failed to provide adequate assistance to farmers facing agricultural distress and did not include strong measures to protect farmland and improve farm productivity. While proposals to establish new multi-specialty hospitals and improve existing healthcare facilities are welcome, opening up such initiatives to private participation may benefit corporate interests,” said Ms Bali, another party leader.

He argued that proposals for expansion in the education sector were inadequate and criticized the policy of promoting the Karnataka Public Schools, claiming that it could lead to the closure of nearby government schools in rural areas. He also opposed proposals to simplify permits to open private schools, claiming that such steps could weaken the public education system.

He expressed concern over the lack of provisions for educated unemployed youth for the Yuvanidhi scheme and criticized the claim that funds allocated under the Scheduled Caste Sub-Plan and Tribal Sub-Plan were diverted to other schemes.