UM Anurag Thakur holds press conference amid BJP’s national budget campaign

The Bhartiya Janta Party (BJP) has launched a 12 day long nationwide campaign on Wednesday to reach out to the public and convey the benefits of the latest 2023-24 budget. While talking to the media today, Union Minister Anurag Thakur stated that in the latest Budget, Rs 2.40 Lakh Crore has been allocated for railway which is the highest ever. He went on comparing it with the previous budgets and revealed that If we compare it to 2013-14, it’s 9 times higher from 2009 to 2014.

Meanwhile he further mentioned that during UPA 2’s govt, J&K was provided only Rs 1044 Crores & in 2023-24, it has been provided Rs 6003 Crores which is 6 times higher. Anurag Thakur later went on saying that in this budget the foundation is laid to complete resolution for a developed India. He mentioned that this Budget has something or the other for villages, poor, women, labourers, middle class, youth, farmers, SC, ST, OBC & every section of society.

Earlier the ruling alliance members thumped the benches during Sitharaman’s Budget speech on Wednesday. However, the most enthusiastic applause was for her announcement of income tax relief, which was greeted with “Modi, Modi” chants in the Lok Sabha, which also saw a few instances of opposition protest.

Although Sitharaman’s subsequent statement that the tax relief will only be available to those who choose the new regime may have dampened enthusiasm, she nevertheless received another round of applause from the treasury benches when she announced a massive 33% increase in capital expenditure to 10 lakh crore.

The opposition also broke into chants of “Adani, Adani,” an apparent reference to the Adani Group, which had won the mandate to operate seven of the eight airports leased by the Airports Authority of India, when Sitharaman announced the allocation of 5,300 crore rupees to the Upper Bhadra project in Karnataka, where elections are scheduled for May.

Also soon after the budget was issued, Nirmala Sitharaman held a post budget press conference in which she also responded to reporters questions about oppositions reaction on the latest budge.

Also Read: FM Sithraman responds to oppositions reaction amid BJP’s budget campaign

Moreover, before the House of Representatives met for the day, members of the National Conference, Farooq Abdullah and Hasnain Masoodi, spoke with Home Minister Amit Shah in the Lok Sabha chamber.