West Bengal's Budget to be Unveiled on Feb 12
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Synopsis
The West Bengal Budget for 2025-26 will be presented on February 12, following a cabinet decision. The budget session begins on February 10, and significant welfare allocations may be expected amidst an upcoming electoral period.
Key Takeaways
- West Bengal Budget date set for Feb 12.
- Session begins Feb 10 with adjournment.
- Possibility of increased welfare allocations.
- Governor's address expected at budget session.
- Focus on fiscal health and spending issues.
Kolkata, Jan 27 (NationPress) The West Bengal Budget for the fiscal year 2025-26 is set to be unveiled in the Assembly on February 12, following a decision made during a cabinet meeting held at the state secretariat, Nabanna, on Monday, chaired by Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee.
The budget session of the state Assembly will commence on February 10. However, on its opening day, the session will be adjourned after the obligatory obituary mentions. The budget will be presented by the West Bengal Finance Minister (independent charge), Chandrima Bhattacharya, ahead of the significant state assembly elections in 2026.
Next year, prior to the elections, a vote-on-account budget will be introduced, while the comprehensive budget will be disclosed only after the polls conclude and results are declared.
On February 1, the Union Finance Minister, Nirmala Sitharaman, will present the Union budget for the financial year 2025-26 in Parliament.
Sources from the state Finance Department indicate that given this will be the last full budget before the 2026 state assembly elections, there may be an increase in allocations for various welfare and financial schemes provided by the state government, particularly those targeting women and youth.
Additionally, an announcement regarding an increase in the dearness allowance for state government employees is anticipated, a long-standing contentious issue with an ongoing case in the Supreme Court.
Chandrima Bhattacharya will unveil the state budget next month amidst the recently released report 'Fiscal Health Index: 2025' from NITI Aayog, which highlights West Bengal’s poor performance in revenue generation, expenditure quality, and debt index.
Among 18 states analyzed, West Bengal ranked 16th in the report. The data indicates that the state's expenditure on physical infrastructure as a percentage of total spending has decreased from 5.3% in 2018-19 to 3% in 2022-23, falling below the national average.
The scenario is similarly grim for capital expenditure as a percentage of total expenditure, which dropped from 12.2% in 2018-19 to 8.3% in 2022-23, again below the national standard.
Although West Bengal's social expenditure as a percentage of total outlay was relatively higher at 28.2% during the reviewed fiscal period, it still remains lower than the national average.
The 'Fiscal Health Index: 2025' report underscores that while West Bengal's tax revenue has been the primary source of income for the state government—largely due to collections under SGST—it has seen an annual growth rate of 6.6% over the past five years, the state’s non-tax revenue has declined over the same period.
Furthermore, the report notes that West Bengal's dependency on grants-in-aid as a percentage of revenue receipts has risen from 17.6% in 2018-19 to 19.6% in 2022-23.
The report also highlights that while West Bengal's debt as a percentage of gross state domestic product (GSDP) has reduced from 40.7% in 2010-11 to 35.7% in 2018-19, the real concern for the state government lies in the interest payments on the accrued debt.
Interest payments account for 20.47% of Revenue Receipts in the current year, limiting the state’s ability to allocate funds for development initiatives.
