Madhya Pradesh: Budget evokes mixed reaction in Sehore

Sehore (Madhya Pradesh): The Madhya Pradesh government’s budget presented in the House on Wednesday evoked mixed reactions from different sections of the society.

Some of them have appreciated the Ladli Behna Yojna, under which each woman will get Rs 1,000 every month. They said it was a woman-friendly budget.

The government’s promise to give two-wheelers to girl students has also received praise from women in the district.

On the other hand, the students, the farmers and the traders said the budget was meant for the ordinary people.

The hike in cooking gas has sparked anger among housewives.

Reacting to the budget, a housewife, Anita Chakradhar, resident of Mandi area in the city, said the state government had announced several welfare schemes for women, which deserve appreciation.

The Ladli Behna Yojna will help the women, but the government should do something to bring down the prices of cooking gas and other essential commodities, Chakradhar said.

Like Chakradhar, many housewives appreciated the government’s efforts to empower women.

Nevertheless, according to a farmer from Phulmogra area, Jamshed Khan, said although the government had called the budget beneficial to the farmers, the prices of electricity, diesel, petrol and fertiliser shot up.

The farmers have already spent a lot of money on Rabi and Kharif crops, but they are not getting back their costs, he said, adding that the prices of crops were not hiked in the budget.

Similarly, a cloth trader Girdhar Kuiya said the traders had not got any benefits in the state budget. There was no cut in tax, he said, adding that the government should have reduced VAT.

Petrol and diesel should be brought within the GST limits to control prices, he said. According to him, small traders are fed up by paying taxes.

In the same way, a youth Aman Siyaram said the government promised jobs but nothing happened. There is nothing for students and unemployed youths, he said.

There is neither any law college nor any medical college at the district headquarters, he said.

There should have been some provisions for increasing the number of hostels for SC/ST students in the budget, he said.