Samrat Chaudhary, Deputy Chief Minister(Dy CM) cum Finance Minister of Bihar, presented a budget of Rs 2,78,725 crore for the fiscal year 2024-2025(FY25) in the Bihar Assembly.
- The budget expenditure has increased by Rs 16840.32 crore from Rs 2,61,885.40 crore in FY24.
Note: This was the first budget of the newly formed National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government led by Chief Minister(CM) Nitish Kumar.
Highlights:
i.Gross State Domestic Product (GSDP):
According to the Bihar Economic Survey 2023-24 tabled in the assembly, the GSDP of Bihar is estimated to grow by 15.5%. Bihar’s per capita income is estimated to be Rs 59,637 per annum at current prices in the fiscal year 2022-23. This is 13.9% higher than the previous year(FY22).
ii.Expenditure:
Expenditure (excluding debt repayment) in 2024-25 is estimated to be Rs 2,56,333 crore. This is 12% lower than the revised estimates of 2023-24.
Of the total expenditure, Rs 1 lakh crore was earmarked for annual scheme outlay.
iii.Receipts:
Receipts (excluding borrowings) for 2024-25 are estimated to be Rs 2,27,238 crore. This marks a 5.7% increase compared to the revised estimates of 2023-24.
iv.Revenue surplus:
The revenue surplus for FY25 is estimated to be Rs 1121.41 crore, which is 0.1 % of GSDP.
In FY24, the revenue surplus was estimated at Rs 4479 crore (0.5% of GSDP).
v.Fiscal deficit:
Fiscal deficit of FY25 is estimated at Rs 29,095 crore (2.9% of GSDP).
Bihar’s Expenditure on Key Sectors:
i.Rs 22,200.35 crore (22.20% of the total expenditure) has been allocated for the education department.
ii.Rs 7,409.13 crore (7.41%) has been allocated for rural works and Rs 7,117.56 crore (7.12%) has been set aside for health departments.
iii.The Bihar government is set to spend over Rs 3,073.26 crore on several scholarship schemes alone.
iv.Rs 8,191.79 crore (8.19%) has been allocated for social welfare.
v.Rs 5.040 crore is the estimated expenditure on good governance schemes under the Saat Nischay, Part-II programme.
About Bihar:
Chief Minister– Nitish Kumar
Governor– Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar
Tiger Reserve– Valmiki Tiger Reserve
Wildlife Sanctuary– Kaimur Wildlife Sanctuary; Rajgir Wildlife Sanctuary