Bihar's budget session concludes with passing of Rs 2 lakh cr budget

Both Houses of Bihar Legislature was adjourned sine die after the completion of 10-day long budget session that came to an end on Wednesday. Speaker Vijay Kumar Choudhary adjourned the Assembly sine die while acting chairman Haroon Rashid did so in the Legislative Council.

Both Houses had seven sittings during the session which began on February 11 with the Governor's address to the joint sittings of the two in newly inaugurated central hall in the annexe building of the legislature. During the session, Deputy Chief Minister Sushil Kumar Modi, who holds the finance portfolio, presented the state budget of Rs 2 lakh crore for 2019-20 and economic survey 2018-19, the Speaker said.

A vote on account of Rs 77,338 crore for four months for 2019 and related appropriation bill was passed by the assembly besides it also passed a third supplementary budget of Rs 10,153.71 crore and related appropriation bill for expenditure during the last quarter of 2018-19, he said. Altogether nine Bills were passed by the state legislature during the budget session which had seven settings.

They included- Reservation in jobs and admissions into education institutions (for economically weaker section) Bill 2019, Bihar Private School (Fee Regulation) Bill 2019, Bihar Advocates Welfare Fund (Amendment) Bill 2019, Bihar Land Reforms (Fixation of Maximum limit & Surplus Land Acquisition) (Amendment) Bill, 2019 among others. Before adjourning the House sine die, the Speaker Choudhary informed that out of 1192 questions which were received by the Assembly secretariat, 971 questions were accepted for the reply, out of which 10 were short notice questions while 850 and 111 questions were of starred and unstarred nature respectively.

The government furnished a reply to 30 questions in the House, while answers for 523 questions were furnished on-line, the Speaker said. In the Legislative Council, acting chairman Haroon Rashid informed the upper House that of 413 questions received by the Council Secretariat, 390 questions were accepted by the Council for governments reply and the government gave its reply to 153 questions.

The answers to the remaining questions would be tabled in the House in the next session, he added. Of the 75 calling attention motions received by the Council, 47 motions were accepted and the government furnished its reply to 44 motions, Rashid added.