Goa Budget Is Of Maximum Announcements, Minimum Achievements: Alemao

Goa’s Leader of Opposition in the Assembly Yuri Alemao on Wednesday termed the budget presented by Chief Minister Pramod Sawant “maximum announcements, minimum achievements”. 
    
Alemao was talking to reporters after the budget was presented on the floor of the House during the ongoing session.     
    
“It appears that the Rs 26,844.4 crore budget outlay presented by Chief Minister Dr. Pramod Sawant is completely unrealistic. Maximum announcements and minimum achievements are my reactions to the budget 2023-24,” he said. 
    
Alemao said the CM has proposed to generate revenue of Rs 800 crore from mining and the state’s share of GST (goods and services tax). “No one knows when mining will start in Goa. The tourism sector which is the second backbone of the economy of Goa is also at an all-time low,” he added. 
    
The Leader of Opposition said that CM should use funds judiciously and adopt austerity measures keeping in mind that social welfare scheme beneficiaries like persons with disabilities, widows, seafarers, sportspersons in “indigent condition” and others need to be paid their financial assistance in time. 
    
Earlier in the day, CM Sawant presented a Rs 26,844-crore budget for 2023-24 proposing to allocate funds to promote tourism in the coastal state, including hinterlands, improve education through reforms, and resume mining to shore up its tax revenue.