Assam Govt to Celebrate 200 Years of Assam Tea: says Finance Min Ajanta Neog

"Our Government wishes to celebrate 200 years of Assam tea, which coincides with the year 2023, in a grand manner," state Finance Minister Ajanta Neog said in presenting the State Budget for the fiscal year 2023-24 in the Assam assembly. "We propose holding road shows in major cities across the country and abroad to promote Assam Tea as a brand and to highlight the rich socio-cultural heritage of tea garden communities."

"The tea industry has been the backbone of our economy for nearly two centuries. Needless to say, the tea industry is also extremely important in terms of job creation. A sizable portion of our population is dependent on tea. Even today, tea accounts for nearly 90% of our exports,' said the finance minister.

"The potential of tea garden land has been unlocked and shall be used for agriculture and allied activities. The Assam Tea Industries Special Incentives Scheme (ATISIS) 2020 will be strengthened in order to encourage the production of orthodox and specialty tea in Assam. The production subsidy for orthodox and specialty tea has already been increased from Rs 7 to Rs 10 per kg, as promised. However, commemorating the 200 years of Assam Tea, I am happy to say that for the current year of 2023-24 only, an enhanced production subsidy of Rs 12 per kg will be extended. "Rs 100 crore has been set aside for this scheme," Ajanta Neog explained.

The Assam Finance Minister also proposed extending the tax holiday on Agricultural Income Tax for the next three years. "This year, as a special relief, all the arrear electricity dues of tea garden worker families living in the lines will be waived off as a one-time measure by the Government. I will set aside Rs 150 crore for this purpose.

"The compensation amount will be increased to Rs 15,000 from Rs 12,000 under the 'Wage Compensation Scheme for Pregnant Women of Tea Garden Areas of Assam,'" said the minister.

The government has already set aside Rs 200 crore in this year's budget for the construction of 500 Mahaprabhu Jagannath Community Halls and Skill Centres in prominent tea garden locations. 10,000 houses will be built in Tea Garden labour lines under the Mukhya Mantri Awaas Yojana. The government will continue to assist Assam Tea Corporation Limited (ATCL) in paying outstanding liabilities of interest on the Provident Fund in a phased manner, with the greater interest of ATCL employees in mind.

"This year, I'm allocating Rs 100 crore. OBC will recognise tea gardens and the Adivasi community as distinct sub-categories. "Around 3% reservation into Government jobs, within the OBC quota, will be considered for them, subject to meeting legal stipulations," Ajanta Neog said. The Assam Finance Minister presented a Rs 935.23 crore deficit state budget for 2023-24 in the assembly on Thursday.

According to the Budget Estimates for 2023-24, the State Consolidated Fund will receive Rs 139443.88 Crore. The revenue account is worth Rs.114084.69 crore, while the capital account is worth Rs.25359.19 crore. After deducting Rs 180298.83 crore from the Public Account and Rs 2000.00 crore from the Contingency Fund, the total receipts amount to Rs 321742.71 crore. In comparison, total expenditure from the State Consolidated Fund is estimated to be Rs 139755.27 crore in 2023-24, of which Rs 111336.59 crore is on Revenue Account and Rs 28418.68 crore is on Capital Account.

"Taking into account the expenditure of Rs 179326.48 Crore under the Public Account and Rs 2000.00 Crore under Contingency Fund, the aggregate expenditure for the year is estimated at Rs 321081.75 Crore. Thus, estimated transactions during the year will result in a Rs 660.96 Crore surplus. This, combined with the opening deficit of Rs.1596.19 crore, will result in a budget deficit of Rs 935.23 crore by the end of the fiscal year 2023-24," Ajanta Neog stated in her budget.