Budget evokes mixed response

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Finance Minister K M Mani’s ‘correction budget’ presented on Friday evoked mixed reactions from various corners. The Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) criticised that the budget had disturbed the social equilibrium which was being maintained by successive governments till date. In his statement, NCP state president A C Shanmughadas said that the budget evoked a feeling that Kerala was all about Pala and Puthuppalli. He said that it seemed that the budget had been framed with a belief that the government would not complete the five-year term.Former Forest-Housing Development Minister Binoy Viswam said that the Finance Minister was trying to sabotage Ecologically Fragile Land law to help the big-scale landowners. He alleged that the minister was also trying to manipulate the land reforms.The Kerala Gazatted Officers’ Association (KGOA) also flayed the budget alleging that the budget was laying the foundation for the privatisation policy being pursued by the Centre. In a statement, the organisation alleged that the budget marked a sharp deviation from the social welfare measures.The Kerala SC/ST Coordination state committee alleged that the promises given to the SC/ST sections during the election were ignored in the budget. The organisation leader Punnala Sreekumar alleged that the government’s development policy which stated that 10 per cent of the state budget amount would be spent on the welfare measures of the SC/ST categories had not been announced.Meanwhile, the Chamber of Commerce, Trivandrum welcomed the various announcements made in the budget. The organisation office-bearers said in their statement that the budget amount of Rs 150 crore earmarked for the Vizhinjam port project and Rs 30 crore for development of the capital city were commendable. They said that the investor meet ‘Emerging Kerala’ announced in the budget was a welcome measure.