Finance Minister Radha Krishna Kishore today said that Chief Minister Hemant Soren has named the upcoming 2025-26 budget as Abua Budget, in this budget, schemes will be included keeping in mind the interests of the forests of Jharkhand, poor people living in remote areas, farmers, people of every section, caste, religion of the state. We will prepare such a budget that can bring happiness on the faces of the people. That is why opinions are being taken from the common people.
In this context, today suggestions and ideas of experts have been invited in the field of agriculture, irrigation, forest-environment, rural development, livelihood mission, urban development, tourism, industry, mines and geology, labor and skill development. He said that many of your valuable suggestions have been received, efforts will be made to include those valuable suggestions in the upcoming 2025-26 budget.
Kishore was addressing the Abua Budget Workshop (Pre-Budget Seminar 2025-26) organized at Project Bhawan on Thursday. While emphasizing on saving surface water, he said that we need to focus on rainwater harvesting in Jharkhand so that the rainwater which flows through rivers and drains can be saved so that sufficient water is available for irrigation and groundwater also improves. He said that rural economy can be strengthened through agriculture, therefore important departments like the agriculture department will be given an important place in the upcoming ABU budget. He also emphasized on strengthening the rural economy through horticulture.
The Minister said that people living in the forest get forest patta but due to lack of connectivity, people of that area do not get adequate facilities. Make efforts to have roads to reach there. Emphasis should be laid on providing them basic needs through Gram Sabha and also emphasize on making Mahua based liquor so that the rural economy gets strengthened.
Rural Development Minister Deepika Pandey Singh said that in the upcoming budget, emphasis will be laid on empowerment of women of Jharkhand. About 32 lakh women are associated with JSLPS. The department's focus in the upcoming budget is on how to help women by economically engaging the financial assistance being given to them through the Maiya Samman Yojana so that they move forward in the direction of self-employment. Attention is being paid to how to train women financially and connect them to employment. Efforts will be made to connect rural women to the urban market and emphasis will also be laid on including small projects of rural drinking water in rural areas. Solar energy will also be promoted in rural areas.
Agriculture Minister Neha Shilpi Tirkey said that keeping in mind the farmers of our state, they will be included in the upcoming budget. In the upcoming budget, emphasis will be laid on strengthening the economic condition of the farmers. Our farmers are traditionally dependent on single farming, our effort will be to provide them with adequate irrigation facilities and emphasize on doing multi-cropping. She said that Birsa Pathshala program is being run under the Agriculture Department, which will be run on a large scale in the upcoming budget, where we will provide training to the farmers, do their capacity building so that they can do farming in a better way on their land.
She said that the schemes of the department, which include Chief Minister Pashudhan Yojana, Jharkhand Milk Federation, need to be strengthened further and we are also doing better in fisheries. She emphasized on including the cultivation of Rabi crops being done by the farmers in the upcoming budget by providing adequate means along with irrigation. Prem Shankar said that emphasis should be laid on Birsa Harit Gram Yojana. There is a need to do natural farming. Jharkhand Millets should be included in the budget. Emphasis should be laid on lac cultivation so that rural economy can be strengthened. There is a need to make a vision documentary on how Jharkhand will be after the next 25 years in 2050. Irrigation system should be strengthened.
Secretary of Planning and Development Department Mast Ram Meena also expressed his views. Agriculture Secretary Abu Bakar Siddiqui said that there will be an effort to generate a rural economy in the upcoming budget. Provision of soil conservation and ponds should be made in this budget. There will be an effort in this budget to make us self-sufficient in egg production. Secretary Rural Development Department K Srinivasan said that work is being done towards empowering women. They are being given credit linkage through self-help groups. They are being strengthened through Birsa Harit Gram Yojana.