West bengal Finance Minister Chandrima Bhattacharya presented a 3.89lakh crore budget for 2025-2026 on Wednesday February 12,2025. The budget has attempted to reach out to people from all walks of life in all corners of the state in some way or another.
West Bengal Budget 2025:
Big good news for government employees at the beginning of the state budget. The Chief Minister had earlier promised that the DA of government employees would be considered in the budget as much as possible. The DA of state government employees has been increased by 4 percent. The increased DA will be effective from April 2025. Similarly, state Finance Minister Chandrima Bhattacharya announced another 4 percent DA in this year’s budget.
West Bengal Budget 2025: Not only for government employees, this budget has brought good news for marginalized citizens as well. The allocation for the ‘Banglar Bari‘ project has been increased in this year’s budget. The state government has announced allocation for the construction of 16 lakh new Bengali houses in this year’s budget. Another 16 lakh houses will be built in the 2025-26 financial year under the Banglar Bari (Rural) project. An additional allocation of Rs 9600 crore has been proposed in the state budget for this.
West Bengal Budget 2025: Trinamool has repeatedly accused the Centre of not disbursing money under the ‘Awas Yojana’. Mamata’s government launched this ‘Bangla Bari’ scheme in December last year. Under this scheme, the state government will give Rs 1 lakh 20 thousand in two installments to 12 lakh eligible families in 21 districts of the state. In fact, Rs 60 thousand of the first installment has already been credited to the beneficiaries’ accounts.
West Bengal Budget 2025: The Chief Minister had said, ‘If the Centre does not give, there will be a balance of Rs 16 lakh, then we will give it in two installments for the next 6 months, the next 6 months, by the beginning of 26th. We will give eight lakh in May-June, and again we will give another eight lakh between December and January.’
This year, the state has faced the worst flood situation in the last one and a half decades. The budget has also focused on ensuring that that situation does not repeat itself. The ‘River Bondhan‘ project has been announced at a cost of Rs 200 crore.
West Bengal Budget 2025: In addition, it has been decided to continue the agricultural income tax exemption for the tea industry for North Bengal. Rs 200 crore has been allocated for providing mobile phones to the state’s ASHA-Anganwadi workers.
Initiatives to alleviate the long-standing plight of the Ghatal residents were also seen in the 2025 state budget. The state allocated 500 crore rupees in the budget to implement the ‘Ghatal Master Plan’.
The work of the state government’s Pathashree project for rural roads has already been completed in three phases. Another Rs 1,500 crore has been allocated for the Pathashree project in the next financial year.
West Bengal Budget 2025: ‘They cheated and betrayed the employees in the market of cheap goods’. Opposition leader Shuvendu Adhikari has criticized the proposal to increase DA of government employees in the state budget. He claims that this budget is Mamata’s last budget, ‘BJP will present a full budget in 2026 and one job will be given to each unemployed family.