Andhra government welcomes the budget, calls it beneficial to states

Andhra Pradesh Finance Minister Buggana Rajendranath called the Union Budget 2023 beneficial and asked the state governments to work together and set their politics aside. Addressing the media in Vijayawada on Wednesday, February 1, the Minister stated that the budget was beneficial at the current time as the country had suffered due to the COVID-19 pandemic for two years.

Talking about the allocations under various sectors, the Minister said it was appreciable that the Union government decided to continue the 50-year interest-free loan to state governments with Rs 1.3 lakh crore allocated in the budget. He added that the AP government proposed the Urban Infrastructure Development Fund (UIDF) in pre-budget meetings. “AP government proposed a UIDF similar to the Rural Infrastructure Development Fund (RIDF). I can proudly say that because of AP, the whole country will benefit through this programme.” He added that the budget appeared to favour infrastructure projects more than food and agriculture.

"Since we did not receive state-by-state budget approvals, we have not yet reviewed it. The FM has announced funding for the Upper Bhadra Dam in Karnataka. As the Tungabhadra river flows through our state, we believe we must evaluate how the project uses water,” he stated.

Meanwhile, Telugu Desam Party (TDP) national spokesperson K Pattabhi Ram appreciated the budget from a national perspective but said it was disappointing from a state perspective. Pattabhi Ram noted that the new tax slab reduced the tax burden on the average person by increasing the income tax rebate limit to Rs 7 lakh from Rs 5 lakh. He lauded the Union government’s efforts to promote and allocate funds for green energy. 

He criticised the state government, claiming that AP CM Jagan Mohan Reddy failed to receive any funding for the state. "Karnataka has received a sum of Rs 5,300 crore for drought-prone areas. There are districts in AP that are prone to drought. This is CM's failure. Jagan travels to Delhi frequently but does not return with benefits for AP. He was unable to exert pressure on the Union government,” he said.