In March 2025, the Chief Minister (CM) of Union Territory (UT) Jammu & Kashmir (J&K) Omar Abdullah who also holds finance portfolio, presented Rs 1.12 lakh crore (Rs 1,12,310 crore) state budget, excluding provisions for Ways and Means Advances (WMA) and overdrafts for Financial Year 2025-26 (FY26), with main focus on zero-deficit budget, at J&K Assembly in Jammu, J&K.
- This marked the 1st budget by an elected government in J&K in 7 years.
- The last budget was presented in 2018 under the Peoples Democratic Party -Bharatiya Janata Party (PDP-BJP) led coalition government in the erstwhile state of J&K, which was accorded the status of UT after the abrogation of Article 370 on August 5, 2019.
- While presenting the budget, he highlighted that the economy of J&K has been expanding from Rs 1,64,103 crore in 2019-20 to Rs 2,45, 022 crore in 2023-24, due to improved environment in the UT.
Key Financial Indicators:
i.The budget has estimated the tax-Gross Domestic Product (GDP) ratio at 7.5% and fiscal deficit at 3% of J&K’s GDP for FY26.
- This fiscal deficit projection is significantly lower than the 5.5% in the Revised Estimate (RE) for FY25.
ii.The budget has projected UT’s GDP at Rs 2,884,22 crore for FY26, showing a growth of 9.5% compared to the previous year.
iii.The total receipts are estimated at Rs 1,40,309.99 crore, including provisions for an overdraft worth Rs 28,000 crore for FY26.
- The revenue receipts are estimated at Rs 97,982 crore and capital receipts at Rs 14,328 crore.
- Rs 31,905 crore will be generated from UT’s own revenues including both tax and non-tax.
- In addition to that, the budget estimated Rs 41,000 crore from Central Assistance and Rs 13,522 crore as Centrally Sponsored Scheme (CSS) and Prime Minister’s Development Package (PMDP) for J&K.
iv.The budget has estimated total gross expenditure at Rs 1,40,309.99 crore for FY26.
- Also, revenue expenditure and capital expenditure are expected to be at Rs 79,703 crore and Rs 32,607 crore, respectively.
v.The primary, secondary, and tertiary sectors are expected to contribute 20%, 18.30%, and 61.70% to Gross State Value Added (GSVA), respectively, in FY25.
Allocation to Key Sectors:
i.Agriculture and Allied Sector: Rs 2,221.58 crore has been allocated for agriculture and allied sectors, marking an increase of Rs 332.72 crore over the RE for FY25.
- Rs 815 crores for agriculture sector, with objective of generating 2.88 lakh jobs, promoting two-crop pattern, and focus on expanding horticulture in UT.
ii.Healthcare sector: The budget has allocated Rs 1,750.50 crore for the healthcare sector.The budget proposed for setting up two new All India Institute of Medical Science (AIIMS) institutions and 10 fully-equipped nursing colleges in the UT.
- Also, the government announced that Rs 5 lakh health insurance per family will be provided to all citizens of UT under Services e-Health Assistance and Teleconsultation (SEHAT) initiative, alongside plans to integrate telemedicine services across the UT.
- In order to enhance medical infrastructure, 3 new Cath Labs will be established, Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) machines will be installed in all government hospitals, and dialysis services will be expanded to all district hospitals.
iii.Toursim: The budget has introduced a provision of Rs 390.20 crore for tourism development.
- Basholi will be developed as an adventure destination and a new water park will be set up in Sidhra, Jammu (J&K).
iv.Industries sector: Rs 602.85 crore has been allocated for the industries sector for FY26, marking an increase of Rs 291.44 crore over the revised allocation for FY25.
- Also, the government has proposed Rs 50 crore for FY26 to support financial aid, mentorship, and incubation for emerging entrepreneurs.
v.Education sector: The combined allocation for school and higher education sectors are at Rs 1,388.97 crore, showing an increase of Rs 242.75 crore in RE for FY25.
- Total 396 schools in J&K have been approved for upgradation to enhance educational infrastructure under Prime Minister’s Schools for Rising India (PM-SHRI) scheme.
v.Allocations to other sectors: rural(Rs 3,773.93 crore), sports (Rs 152.69 crore), labour, employment and skill development (Rs 379.14 crore), power (Rs 2,021.37 crore), among others.
vi.The budget has also proposed a reform in the stamp duty structure for ‘gift transactions’ among blood relatives, to promote ease of transactions and reduce legal disputes over property transfers.
vii.The budget has introduced provisions for grants worth Rs 5,000 crore aimed at strengthening regional development.
Key Announcements:
i.The government has announced that from April 1 2025, all women in the UT will be granted free-ridership on government-owned public transport, including e-buses.
- The government has further proposed to support 40,000 women across J&K under the ‘Lakhpati Didi’ scheme in launching their micro-startups, ensuring a sustainable annual income of Rs 1 lakh.
ii.The government has also announced to provide a free ration of 10 kilogram (kg) per person to all beneficiaries of Antyodaya Anna Yojana (AAY) starting from April 1, 2025.
- Also, the government has increased the Marriage assistance for women beneficiaries covered under AAY from Rs 50,000 to Rs 75,000.
iii.During the budget, J&K’s CM proposed to provide monthly 200 units of free electricity to all Antyodaya families in J&K.
- This initiative is integrated with Prime Minister Surya Ghar: Muft Bijli Yojana (PMSGMBY), which will enable the installation of grid-connected solar systems, generating the required power and eliminating the need for paying electricity bills.
- The government also announced that with a total investment of Rs 750 crore over a period of 5 years, will help in reducing Aggregate Technical and Commercial (AT&C) losses and promote sustainable energy.
iv.J&K CM announced the Green Mission 2025 to promote clean & green villages. He also announced the formation of Centres of Excellence(CoE) for water sports at Dal Lake (Srinagar) and Basohli (Jammu) and a gymnastics academy at Gindun Rajbagh and Khel Gaon, Nagrota.
- He also proposed four state-of-the-art cricket academies with an allocation of Rs 8 crore, youth hostels in J&K divisions with an outlay of Rs 10 crore, apart from the development of 247 playfields, stadiums, and sports courts.
About Jammu & Kashmir (J&K):
Chief Minister (CM)- Omar Abdullah
Lieutenant Governor (LG)– Manoj Sinha
Capital- Jammu (in winter) and Srinagar (in summer)
National Parks (NPs)- Dachigam NP, Salim Ali NP
