Kolkata: After 14 years, the state Assembly will hold a discussion on the budgetary provisions for the West Bengal Home Department on Wednesday. Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari, who is also in charge of the department, will reply to concerns raised by the legislators.
The last time there was any discussion of the department’s budgetary allocations was in 2012, and since then the matter has been guillotined, meaning the approval of public spending for the department was fast-tracked and passed on the floor of the House without discussion.
The Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamool Congress government came to power in the state in 2011, ending the 34-year Left Front regime. Mamata Banerjee, as the Chief Minister, was also in charge of the state home department from 2011 to 2026.
However, barring 2011 and 2012 (the first two years of her term as the Chief Minister and the state home minister), there was never any discussion on budgetary allocations for the state home department till the end of her term after the recently concluded Assembly polls.
The principal opposition parties, first the CPI(M)-led Left Front in her first term, then Congress in her second term and finally the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in her last and third terms, had been extremely critical in the matter.
However, as the new and the ninth Chief Minister of West Bengal, Suvendu Adhikari decided to end the practice of sending the approval of the budgetary allocations for guillotine and instead initiate discussion on it on the floor of the House.
The discussion on the budgetary allocations for the state home department will commence in the first half of the extended budget session of the House on Wednesday. A total of two hours have been allotted for it. The discussions will end with CM Adhikari’s reply.
After the lunch break, there will be a meeting of the state cabinet at the Assembly premises, chaired by the Chief Minister. Certain crucial administrative decisions are slated to be cleared at the cabinet meeting.
In the second half of the extended budget session, there will be discussions on the budgetary allocations for the state power department. Again, the Chief Minister, who is also in charge of the state power department, will reply on the decision at the end, following which the House will be adjourned for the day.
(IANS)
