NDA allies Nitish, Naidu to play prominent roles; Bihar, Andhra to get special packages – Firstpost

The Union Budget 2024-24, presented by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Tuesday (July 23), contains several announcements for Bihar and Andhra Pradesh, states from where it drew its key allies — Nitish Kumar-led Janata Dal (United) and Chandrababu Naidu’s Telegu Desam Party (TDP).

Finance Minister Sitharaman has announced new airports, medical colleges, highways in Bihar and special financial assistance for Andhra Pradesh in the 2024 Budget.

What Budget 2024 has announced for Bihar

• New airports, medical colleges and sports infrastructure should be set up in Bihar.

• 26,000 crore allocated for highways in Bihar

• Requests from the Bihar government for multilateral development assistance will be expedited, External Affairs Minister Sitharaman said.

“On the Amritsar-Kolkata industrial corridor, we will support development of an industrial node in Gaya in Bihar,” Sitharaman said while presenting the Budget 2024 in the Lok Sabha.

The Finance Minister further said that this move would give impetus to the development of the eastern region.

“We will also support the development of road connectivity projects: Patna-Purnea Expressway, Buxar-Bhagalpur Expressway, Bodhgaya-Ragir-Vaishali-Darbhanga and an additional two-lane bridge over the Ganga River at Buxar at a cost of Rs 26,000 crore,” she added.

What Andhra Pradesh got from Budget 2024

• Rs 15,000 crore allocated in the current fiscal for the development of Andhra Pradesh capital

• Coordinated efforts to meet obligations under the AP Reorganization Act

• Grants to backward regions of Andhra Pradesh to be provided under the AP Reorganisation Act.

“Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act – Our government has made efforts to fulfil the obligations under the Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act,” Sitharaman said.

“We recognise the need of the state for capital and will facilitate special financial support through multilateral agencies. In the current fiscal, Rs 15,000 crore will be provided with additional amounts in future years,” the finance minister said.