Punjab Budget: No new taxes imposed, no funds allocated for monthly grant to women; focus on drug menace, health sector

Rs 36,427.90 crore will go towards paying salaries, Rs 20,750.11 crore towards payment of pension and Rs 24,995.49 crore for interest payment on loans

March 26, 2025 1:47 pm

Punjab will raise a loan of Rs 49,900 crore in 2025-26

March 26, 2025 1:02 pm

By the end of next fiscal, the state’s outstanding debt will be Rs 3.96 lakh crore

March 26, 2025 1:01 pm

No new taxes imposed in Budget; no allocation of Rs 1000 monthly honorarium for women

March 26, 2025 12:15 pm

Rs 27,650 crore to be earned from GST; Rs 7000 crore to be earned through stamp duty and registration deeds

March 26, 2025 12:13 pm

Rs 10,302 crore to be spent on creation of capital assets

In 2025-26, revenue receipts projected at Rs 1,11,740 crore

March 26, 2025 12:12 pm

It will include Rs 63250 crore as Own Tax Revenue, Rs 25,703 crore as share from central taxes and Rs 10,576 crore as grant in aid from Centre

Rs 11560 crore allocated for Home Affairs and Justice

March 26, 2025 12:07 pm

New court complexes to be set up at Dera Bassi, Khanna and Patran

Rs 10 crore to be spent for upgrade of Nangal as tourism hub

March 26, 2025 12:07 pm

Rs 54 crore allocated for Nawanshahr to build a heritage street and auditorium

Rs 1336 crore allocated for medical college at Nawanshahr

March 26, 2025 12:06 pm

Rs 1650 crore for grant in aid to PAU, PU, GADVASU, Punjabi University and GNDU

Rs 17975 crore allocated for Education sector

March 26, 2025 12:05 pm

This is 12 per cent of total expenditure. Solar panels to be installed in schools.

New project for reclamation of water logged land in Fazilka; new shrimp processing unit being set up

March 26, 2025 11:58 am

Total power subsidy for this year Rs 19,616 crore

March 26, 2025 11:58 am

This includes Rs 9992 crore for agriculture consumers, Rs 7614 crore for domestic consumers and Rs 2000 crore for industrial consumers. Last year, the total power subsidy was Rs 21910 crore. This means power subsidy is down by Rs 2306 crore.

Rs 500 crore for Crop Residue Management to purchase CRM machines

March 26, 2025 11:57 am

Rs 14,524 crore allocated for Agriculture

March 26, 2025 11:56 am

Of this, Rs 9,992 crore will be used for free power to farmers.

Rs 13, 987 crore allocated under Scheduled Castes Sub Plan - which is 34 per cent of states total development budget

March 26, 2025 11:52 am

Rs 450 crore allocated for free bus travel to women

March 26, 2025 11:52 am

Rs 6176 crore allocated for social security pensions to elderly, widows, destitute women, children and differently-abled

March 26, 2025 11:51 am

Loan waiver scheme for Scheduled Castes introduced

March 26, 2025 11:50 am

Those who have defaulted on repaying loans taken from Punjab Scheduled Castes Land Development and Finance Corporation - till March 31, 2020- will get a loan waiver. 4640 to benefit from this scheme.

Fee charged doorstep delivery of government services reduced from Rs 120 to Rs 50

March 26, 2025 11:49 am

Punjab government to bear the balance of Rs 70, says Cheema.

Rs 3426 crore is power subsidy for industry in 2025-26

March 26, 2025 11:48 am

Technology Extension Centres to be set up at Amritsar, Hoshiarpur, Jalandhar, Moga, Patiala and Mohali

March 26, 2025 11:46 am

Unity mall to be built in Amritsar

March 26, 2025 11:40 am

It will have stalls representing all states/UTs. Artisans from across the country will display their products in stalls at this mall. Rs 80 crore allocated for this.

Share of industry in Punjab economy is now 27 per cent

March 26, 2025 11:39 am

Industry to get additional incentives of Rs 250 crore for financial incentives to industry.

Rs 7614 crore for power subsidy to provide 300 units of free power each month to domestic consumers

March 26, 2025 11:39 am

In an unprecedented move, MLA Budh Ram stopped the Budget speech of the Finance Minister, to praise proposals

March 26, 2025 11:35 am

Rs 115 crore 'Mukh Mantri Street Light Yojana' for installing street lights in villages and towns

March 26, 2025 11:34 am

In urban development sector, Rs 5983 crore allocated

March 26, 2025 11:30 am

Focus on cleanliness, water supply, sewage, roads and street lights in 166 towns and cities. Rs 140 crore to be spent for creating “model streets” in major cities.

Rs 585 crore allocated for 'Rangla Punjab Vikas Scheme' to be started in each district for carrying development works

March 26, 2025 11:27 am

Rs 5 crore to be spent in each of 117 constituencies.

Rs 3500 crore allocated for 'Badalde Pind, Badalda Punjab' scheme

March 26, 2025 11:26 am

It is being brought to improve infrastructure in all 12,581 villages of the state. These include rejuvenation of village ponds, setting up sewerage treatment plant, restoring the irrigation channels to provide canal water, construction of playgrounds in villages and installing streetlights. All broken link roads in villages to be repaired for which Rs 2,873 crore has been allocated.

Sehat card to be issued to all, which will allow to avail cashless treatment of up to Rs 10 lakh in government and private hospitals of state

March 26, 2025 11:23 am

Rs 778 crore has been allocated for this initiative of providing health insurance.

Health and Family Welfare gets Rs 268 crore

March 26, 2025 11:21 am

So far 45 lakh families get government health insurance. Under this Budget, all 65 lakh families to get free health insurance. The insurance cover for the families have been increased from Rs 5 lakh to Rs 10 lakh.

Emergency Response Vehicles to be bought

March 26, 2025 11:18 am

Cheema says Emergency Response Vehicles—758 four wheelers and 916 two wheelers—to be bought, for which Rs 125 crore have been allocated.

Rs 979 crore allocated for 'Khed da Punjab Badalda Punjab' initiative

March 26, 2025 11:17 am

3,000 indoor gyms to be set up, says Cheema.

Next big focus on Sports to engage youth to keep them away from drugs: Cheema

March 26, 2025 11:15 am

Every village to have playgrounds and indoor gyms in every village. Facilities to be provided in villages for locally popular sports. On a pilot basis, 87 playgrounds already built in Tarn Taran.

Revenue deficit and fiscal deficit will be 2.51 per cent and 3.84 per cent by end of 2025-26

March 26, 2025 11:14 am

We are moving towards fiscal consolidation. The a revenue deficit and fiscal deficit will be 2.51 per cent and 3.84 per cent by the end of 2025-26, says Cheema.

Drug census to cover every household to understand its prevalence: Finance Minister

March 26, 2025 11:13 am

Cheema says the census will cover every household to understand prevalence of drugs, usage of de-addiction centres, etc and collect data on socio-economic status of people. This will help create effective and scientific strategy to eradicate the problem of drugs.

First-ever drug census to be carried out in the coming year: Cheema

March 26, 2025 11:07 am

Big focus in the Budget proposals is on 'Yudh Nasheyan Virudh' campaign of the state government. A first ever drug census is to be carried out in the coming year.

Finance Minister Harpal Cheema starts presenting his Budget proposals for 2025-26

March 26, 2025 11:02 am

Cheema is presenting a Budget of Rs 2.36 lakh crore. This is a futuristic budget, and is a “Badalda Punjab Roadmap for 2025-26”, he says. Tribune photo: Ravi Kumar

Focus of the Budget will be on ensuring maximum grants to the Home Affairs and Health Departments to continue with the anti-drug campaign

March 26, 2025 10:58 am

Tribune photo: Ravi Kumar

Creating a conducive environment for industrial investment; improving urban infrastructure also likely to figure in priority areas

March 26, 2025 10:57 am

Budget to emphasise education, healthcare, and eradicating drug addiction

March 26, 2025 10:54 am

Sources say the proposals for 2025-26 will showcase the fiscal consolidation that the AAP regime has been able to achieve in the past three years.