CM Kejriwal holds meeting with ministers to discuss budget preparations

The chief minister asked ministers to ramp up preparations for budget and fix priorities of their departments within a week so that they could be firmed up in the next meeting, govt said in statement

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal held a meeting with ministers of his government on Saturday to discuss preparations for the 2024-25 budget, the government said in a statement.

The chief minister asked his ministers to ramp up preparations for the budget and fix priorities of their departments within a week so that they could be firmed up in the next meeting, the statement added.

The budget is expected to focus on education, health, water, electricity and infrastructure. The feedback of stakeholders will be take on the budget proposals and good ones will be incorporated, the statement further said.

A meeting of the minister and officers chaired by the chief minister will be held next week in which the budget priorities will be finalised, it said.

Kejriwal directed Health Minister Saurabh Bharadwaj and Education Minister Atishi to prepare plans of new initiatives to make health and education model of the Delhi government, according to the statement.

Water supply, roads and urban development issues were also discussed in the meeting. The chief minister also held discussions over funds required for different schemes in the budget.

Atishi, who also holds the finance portfolio, will present her first budget which will be the 10th of the Kejriwal government. The previous budget was themed "clean beautiful and modern Delhi" and total allocations of Rs 78,800 crore were made in it.