Finance Minister Highlights Central Funding Disparity During Jharkhand Budget Session

During the budget debate, Jharkhand’s Finance Minister presented a detailed fiscal statement, outlining the original budget of Rs 158,560 crore and the supplementary addition of Rs 8,399 crore 31 lakh. He pointed out that the state has already spent over Rs 4,258 crore on rural development, Rs 971 crore on school education, and Rs 490 crore on disaster management in the first four months of the year. The minister accused the Union Government of discriminatory treatment, noting that Jharkhand receives only 0.73 % of central tax shares, translating to roughly Rs 360 crore, compared with Rs 19,208 crore for Uttar Pradesh and Rs 10,845 crore for Bihar. He defended the state’s financial health, citing a revenue‑to‑expenditure ratio of approximately 25‑26 % versus 21 % and praise from the NITI Aayog for prudent fiscal management.