AP budget skips Dwacra loan waiver and unemployment allowance

Finance Minister Yanamala Ramakrishnudu on Thursday introduced the budget of AP government for the year 2016-17 with an outlay of Rs 1,35,688 crore. Announcing Rs 1,000 crore budget allocation for Kapu Corporation, the Finance Minister revealed the government's plan to include skill development and youth empowerment programmes costing Rs 880 crore with an aim of developing the state into a skill capital within five years.

From the total budget, Rs 49,134 crore has been allotted to planned expenditure segment and Rs 86,584 crore in non-planned expenditure. Going into the specifications, farmers' loan waiver is allotted Rs 3,512 crore; Rs 7,300 crore - irrigation; Rs 17,502 crore - school education; Rs 5,838 crore - agriculture; Rs 2,548 crore - higher education; Rs 2,233 crore - health; Rs 1,500 crore Amaravati construction; Rs 1,000 crore - construction of drainage system at Vijayawada and Guntur.

While the budget mentioned some of the ambitious projects of the government including construction of incubation center at Tirupati and five green-field airports across the state, several popular schemes such as Dwacra women's loans waiver and unemployment allowance to jobless youth were skipped. Also, the irrigation sector was allocated Rs 1,100 crore less than the previous year.