State Budget to be presented on afternoon of 20 Feb
By Arun Pratap Singh
Dehradun, 17 Feb: The Business Advisory Committee (BAC) of Uttarakhand State Assembly held a meeting today to set the agenda of the session and to outline the legislative work of the House during the session. The meeting was held with Speaker Ritu Khanduri Bhushan in the chair. In line with the established convention, it was decided at the meeting that the session will begin with address of Governor Lt Gen Gurmit Singh (Retd), tomorrow, the first day of the assembly session.
As per the decision of the BAC, the Dhami government will present the budget for the financial year 2025-26 on 20 February. The budget will be presented in the House at 12:30 p.m.
During the meeting, the Speaker insisted that the cooperation of all the members is expected to discuss topics related to substantive and quality development in the House. She stated that she expects cooperation from the leaders of all the parties to conduct the House peacefully and smoothly so that the proceedings can be conducted in an unobstructed and just manner.
Bhushan also stated that she hopes there would be a positive discussion in the House on all the issues raised in the development of the state and public interest. She also mentioned that she would provide equal opportunity to all the members of the ruling party and the opposition by taking them along. She added that, to fulfil the hopes and expectations of the people, her effort will be to strengthen the democratic institution. She urged the leaders of the parties that collective efforts are needed to enhance the dignity of the House and to further raise the level of discussion and dialogue. It is hoped that all the parties will actively cooperate in this.
In the meeting held today, the business agenda of the House from 18 to 20 February was decided. The BAC will hold another meeting later to decide on further agenda of the session. It was decided that the session would begin with the Governor’s address tomorrow at 11 a.m. At 3 p.m., the speaker will again read out the text of the governor’s speech, a part of the business in the House, following which, the house will be adjourned till 11 a.m. on 19 February.
On 19 February, the proceedings will begin with Question Hour followed by Zero Hour, following which the Governor’s address will be discussed, the motion of thanks will be presented and discussed, after which legislative work will be completed.
On 20 February, the State Budget for the financial year 2025-26 will be presented by Finance Minister Prem Chand Aggarwal, and there will be a detailed discussion in the House on the general budget and departmental budgets.
Parliamentary Affairs Minister Prem Chand Agarwal, Leader of the Opposition Yashpal Arya, BSP leader of the Legislative Assembly Mohammad Shahzad, MLAs Khajan Das, Pritam Singh, Umesh Sharma Kau, Secretary Dhananjay Chaturvedi, Secretary-in-charge Hem Pant, and other officials of the Legislative Assembly were present at the Business Advisory Meeting.
