The Maharashtra government has introduced supplementary demands of Rs6,486 crore in both houses of the state legislature at the start of the budget session. Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar presented these demands, which will be discussed on March 6 and 7 before approval.
With this, the total supplementary demands for the financial year have reached a record Rs1,37,163 crore the highest ever. Earlier, the state had introduced Rs94,889 crore in its pre-poll budget in July 2024 as a preparation for the Assembly elections. In supplementary demand, the maximum amount was earmarked for election sops schemes like Ladkli Behan scheme. It was followed by Rs35,788-crore in the subsequent assembly session, bringing the previous total to Rs1,30,677 crore.
A major allocation of Rs3,752 crore has been made under the PM Rural Housing Scheme to provide houses for Scheduled Tribes. Additionally, Rs2,000 crore has been allocated under the Mukhyamantri Baliraja Electricity Subsidy Scheme for farmers belonging to Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes. The state government has also set aside Rs1,450 crore under the Central Government’s Special Assistance Scheme for interest-free loans for roads and bridge projects, which will have to be raised from state savings.
Other key provisions include Rs375 crore for the Rajarshi Chhatrapati Shahu Maharaj Education Fee Scholarship Scheme, Rs335 crore as the central share for implementing the National Rural Health Mission, and Rs300 crore for paying village panchayat street light electricity bills to Mahavitaran, including penalties and interest.
A sum of Rs296 crore has been allocated as margin money loans for four sugar factories through the National Cooperative Development Corporation for working capital. However, there is no mention of which factories these are or whether they are linked to ruling party leaders. Infrastructure projects have received attention, with Rs244 crore allocated to repay interest on loans taken for land acquisition for the Pune Ring Road and Jalna-Nanded Expressway projects. Additionally, Rs221 crore has been allocated for pensions and pending payments under the 7th Pay Commission for retired employees of Maharashtra Jeevan Pradhikaran.
In terms of irrigation and water conservation, Rs175 crore has been allocated for various projects under the Baliraja Jal Sanjeevani Yojana through the Godavari Marathwada Irrigation Development Corporation. Rs171 crore has been set aside for pollution control projects under the National River Conservation Plan for the Mula-Mutha River in Pune.
