New budget session

SHILLONG, MAR 13: Meghalaya chief minister Mukul Sangma will present the vote-on-account on the first day of the budget session of the recently-constituted Assembly on Friday.

The chief minister, who also holds the finance portfolio, said he will table the vote-on-account on the first day of the session before presenting the full-fledged budget on March 22. “This is required in order to enable the government to carry out its required tasks before the presentation of the budget proper,” he said.

Sangma said that this year’s budget would “dwell on proper and holistic investment measures and initiatives consistent with those of the previous government and as clearly reflected in the manifesto of the Congress party”.

The government’s intention, he said, was to focus more on the service sector and make “serious attempts” to address the various gaps in the infrastructure sector. “In the service sector, we intend to include education, health, tourism and information technology to name a few,” said the chief minister.

The session will continue till March 22 when the budget will be tabled before going into a recess. It will reassemble again on April 8 and continue till April 18. With 16 working days, this will be one of the longest Assembly sessions in recent times. Meghalaya otherwise is known for its short-duration Assembly sittings. While 12 days have been allocated for transaction of government business, four days would be set aside for private members.

“The first day of the session will witness the presentation of the supplementary demands for grants and the supplementary appropriation 2012-2013, introduction of government Bills and obituary references,” said an official in the Assembly secretariat, adding that the newly-elected Assembly Speaker Abu Taher Mondal will also announce the names of the members nominated by him to the panel of chairmen to preside over during the session.

The session, of course, will begin with the customary address by Governor Ranjit Shekhar Mooshahary.  – By Our Reporter