Naveen Patnaik Critiques BJP Government’s First Budget as “Name Changing Budget”

Bhubaneswar: Leader of the Opposition and Biju Janata Dal (BJD) president, Naveen Patnaik, has criticized the first budget of the Mohan Majhi-led Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government, accusing it of merely rebranding existing schemes from his previous administration. Speaking during the general discussion on the annual budget for fiscal 2024-25 in the State Assembly, Patnaik claimed that over 80% of the budget consisted of renamed initiatives originally launched by the BJD.

“Congratulations to the new government on presenting its first budget and a special congratulations for repeating more than 80% of the schemes implemented by our government. More than 80% of your budget allocation flows towards the schemes formulated by the BJD Government,” Patnaik stated.

Patnaik criticized the BJP for failing to bring the promised “PARIBARTAN” (change), instead opting to rename 45 existing schemes. “BJP said their government will be a GAME CHANGER but unfortunately has ended up being a ‘NAME CHANGER’,” he remarked, emphasizing that the BJP had not introduced significant new initiatives.

He argued that the BJD’s schemes, which have been adopted by the BJP, demonstrated their effectiveness and pro-people orientation. Patnaik scrutinized the remaining 20% of the budget, questioning its adequacy in fulfilling the BJP’s election promises.

“We have circulated a copy of the BJP manifesto for ready reference. I will talk about 3 to 4 promises, sorry guarantees, out of many that they have made. Point 29 of the BJP manifesto promised ₹50,000 to every woman of Odisha under the SUBHADRA scheme. With more than 2 crore women in Odisha, this promise would require one lakh crore rupees to fulfill. However, only 10,000 crores have been allocated in the budget, covering less than ten percent of the women,” Patnaik highlighted.

Patnaik also addressed the BJP’s pension promise, noting that the budget allocation would only benefit a small fraction of the state’s 50 lakh pensioners. “You have mentioned in your budget that senior citizens over eighty years of age and persons with 80 percent or more disability will get the enhanced pension amount. What will happen to the rest 49 lakh pensioners between 60 to 80 years of age including widows, PWDs, and distressed people?” he questioned.

The LoP criticized the BJP’s promise of ₹3,100 per quintal Minimum Support Price (MSP) for farmers, stating that the budget allocation would not be sufficient to cover even 30% of the farmers. He also challenged the feasibility of providing 300 units of free electricity, calling it a misleading promise.

Patnaik concluded by expressing doubt over the BJP’s promise of creating 25 lakh “LAKHPATI DIDIs” by 2027, stating that the allocation of ₹1,000 crores was grossly insufficient. He demanded transparency and accountability, urging the government to present a detailed list of beneficiaries in the Assembly.

“You promised a developed Odisha by the year 2036. I’ll give one example of your vision for a developed Odisha. The budget document provides ₹20 crores for the industrial corridor connecting Rourkela-Sambalpur-Paradip and Dhamra by June 2027. A corridor like this will not cost less than one lakh crore. Your party is known for ‘JUMLA’, but this is a cruel JOKE on the people of Odisha to whom you gave the dream of a developed Odisha,” he stated.