FM Nirmala Sitharaman to present a separate budget for J&K

Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will present the Union Budget 2024–25 in Parliament today, on 23rd July. The Finance Minister will also present the Jammu and Kashmir Budget for 2024–25 following the introduction of the national budget on Wednesday, 24th July.

This will be Jammu and Kashmir’s fifth budget introduced in Parliament rather than the Union Territory’s Legislative Assembly. 

The interim budget for Jammu and Kashmir, was presented in Parliament on February 5 by The Finance Minister, suggesting allocation of  Rs 2029.95 crore for agriculture and related sectors and Rs 1284.45 crore for security-related activities in 2024–25. This amount is Rs 500.89 crore more than the amended allotment made in 2023-24. The rural sector was given capital expenditures of Rs 3730 crore for the next fiscal year. The tourism industry received Rs 357.70 crore, an increase of Rs 103.95 crore over the current fiscal year. Rs 1427.61 crore had been approved for health and medical education.

The budget focuses  on empowering women, fostering inclusive growth, ensuring social inclusion in the state, fostering sustainable agriculture, bolstering democracy, promoting Jammu and Kashmir as an investment destination, and creating jobs.

Following the breakdown of the PDP-BJP coalition, the then-J&K Governor, who served as the State Administrative Council’s leader, approved the 2019-20 budget. After Jammu and Kashmir was reformed as a Union Territory in August 2019, its budgets were introduced  to Parliament.   Since 2018, there has been no elected government in the state.