Punjab Vidhan Sabha session begins today
As Opposition parties gear up to take on the ruling AAP on the charges of deteriorating fiscal health of the state, agrarian crisis, illegal mining, just-started farmers’ agitation and short duration of session, the latter, in turn, is preparing to deflect these by taking up the “corruption” issue on the floor of the House, during the two-day winter session of the Vidhan Sabha that begins on Tuesday.
Opposition MLAs are preparing to attack the ruling party over the high market borrowings to run its day-to-day affairs. Since the issue was also raised by Governor Banwarilal Purohit in his letter recently, the Opposition MLAs plan to question the fiscal prudence and fiscal responsibility of the ruling party. They will be questioning the government for adding to the state’s debt burden as in the first seven months of this year, the government has borrowed Rs 20,457.93 crore, while another Rs 30,899.81 crore was raised in their first-year rule in 2022-23, taking the total loans raised by the AAP government in 21 months of their rule to Rs 51,357 crore.
The Opposition will also raise the issue of illegal mining in the state, accusing the government of “overt and covert support to those involved in illegal mining and the transfer of officers checking these nefarious activities”, while questioning the tall claims made by AAP of realising thousands of crores from mining operations before forming the government.
The ruling party is expected to counter this by highlighting its achievements in the upgrade of school and health infrastructure (smart schools and Aam Aadmi Party clinics) by allocating higher budgetary allowances toward these sectors and regularly meeting all their committed liabilities.
They, in turn, will also highlight how their opponents could not meet their committed liabilities when in power, including default in the disbursal of salaries, social security pensions, payment of subsidy to powercom, etc.
The government will table five Bills in the session, which will help in increasing the non-tax revenue in the state. Two of these will be tabled in the House by Finance and Taxation Minister Harpal Cheema on Tuesday and remaining three by Revenue Minister Brahm Shanker Jimpa on Wednesday.
It is likely that Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann will also table the report of the “Main Punjab Bolda” programme held on November 1 to debate the issue of the Satluj Yamuna Link canal, highlighting how the opposition parties, when in power, had not safeguarded the interests of Punjab on the crucial river waters issue.
The much-awaited hike in the State Agreed Price of sugarcane will also be announced by the CM on the floor of the House, which as already declared by him, will be highest in the country. The government will also pat its own back in higher than targeted procurement of grains this year and how it has helped the agrarian economy.
