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Uttar Pradesh government presented its first supplementary budget for 2023-24, totaling ₹28,760.67 crore. Notably, ₹10,000 crore has been allocated for the power sector, and there are provisions for populist announcements, including ₹900 crore for free electricity supply to farmers using private tubewells.
The budget also emphasizes Ayodhya projects, with an allocation of nearly ₹170 crore for the pilgrim town. This includes funding for the renovation of 100-year-old temples across the state, with a particular focus preceding the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.
Additionally, over ₹4250 crore has been earmarked for road infrastructure, and ₹854 crore has been allocated for disaster relief. The supplementary budget, presented almost nine months after the annual budget of ₹6.90 lakh crore for 2023-24, incorporates new demands of ₹7421.21 crore, constituting about one-fourth of its total size. Of this, ₹9714 crore has been designated for capital expenditure.
Finance Minister Suresh Khanna presented the supplementary demands in the state assembly in the presence of Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath. The allocations also cover various projects in Yogi Adityanath’s home district Gorakhpur, such as ₹12 crore for the NCC Training Academy and ₹5 crore for the Sainik School.
Ayodhya, in particular, received significant attention, with ₹100 crore allocated for Ramotsava in 2023-2024 and ₹25 crore for the International Ramayan and Vedic Research Institute. Funds were also directed towards the renovation of over 100 temples, paths, dharamshalas, or pilgrimage centers.
In the power sector, ₹1000 crore has been allocated to provide a discount in the rate of electricity supplied to power loom weavers. Other allocations include ₹3200 crore to fund losses of power distribution companies (discoms) and ₹1300 crore (2023-2024) and ₹574.64 crore (2020-2021) to the Uttar Pradesh Power Corporation Ltd (UPPCL) as reimbursement subsidy. Additionally, ₹1028 crore has been earmarked to strengthen power distribution infrastructure in Noida and Mau.
Infrastructure development includes ₹518.87 crore to pay an additional 6% (in addition to GST) amount to the developers of the Ganga Expressway project. Other allocations cover diverse areas such as textiles, agriculture, maintenance of stray cows, free bus rides for elderly women, sports awards, and regional development authorities.
The supplementary budget also caters to education, with ₹300 crore for scholarships to class 10 students. Various institutions, including Bhatkhande Sanskriti University and government press, receive funding for maintenance and development.
The budget further addresses digital initiatives, with ₹2.5 crore allocated to implement e-Vidhan in the legislative council and ₹1.6 crore for installing a digital sound system in the Vidhan Sabha Hall and PD Tandon Hall of the state legislative assembly.
