No spl package given to city in Budget, says NGO

Members of the NGO, Amritsar Vikas Manch, felt that the Union Budget, unveiled yesterday, ignored Punjab in general and Amritsar in particular.

The Budget mostly favoured Bihar and Assam. The farmers of Bihar were granted a special package, besides the establishment of a “Makhana Board”, a central food technology institute and greenfield airports. On the other hand, a central urea manufacturing plant was sanctioned for Assam.

Kulwlant Singh Ankhi, patron of the AVM, said Punjab, especially Amritsar, was fully ignored in the Budget. Amritsar, Pathankot, Gurdaspur, Tarn Taran and Ferozepur are the border districts, but they have not been given any tax relief on par with the union territory of Jammu and Kashmir. No special economic package has been sanctioned to promote tourism in Amritsar.

Being a border district, Amritsar is suffering from international nacro-terrorism and bilateral trade with Pakistan through the Attari-Wagah border has not been revived.

The trade, industry and tourism industry of Amritsar is badly suffering due to the year-long agitation by farmers, but the Central Government has not planned any step to end the farmers’ agitation. Cauliflower is being sold for Re1 and paise 50 per kilogram on the wholesale market causing a financial loss to farmers, but there was no mention in the Budget to make functional a cargo terminal at the Amritsar airport. No local employment generating plan is mentioned in the Budget for the educated and skilled youth to check brain drain.