Delhi's outcome budget: There are gaps between promise and delivery

The outcome budget released by the AAP government in Delhi for first two quarters of the current financial year show that many big-ticket announcements made in the ambitious Rozgar Budget are yet to take off.

Outcome budget, released by the planning department of the state government, is a progress card on what various departments have done with the outlays in the annual budget.

Among the major projects yet to take off in the capital are the Delhi shopping festival; the food-truck policy; development of world-class city forests; promotion of start-ups; and, re-redevelopment of city’s five iconic markets.

Also read: Delhi govt presents ‘Rozgar Budget’; promises 20 lakh jobs in 5 years

The Rozgar Budget

The Rs 78,000 crore ‘Rozgar Budget’ was presented by Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia, who also holds the finance portfolio. It focussed on creating 20 lakh job opportunities in the next five years through boosting the retail sector, redevelopment of famous markets and industrial areas in non-conforming zones, start-ups, tourism and promoting night-time economy.

Delhi shopping festival

The Delhi shopping festival was one of the major initiatives announced in the budget with an outlay of Rs 250 crore.

Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal had even asked people outside Delhi to book their tickets between January 28 and February 26 to attend the festival and newspaper advertisements were issued by the Delhi government.

But, as per the outcome budget report, the dates are now being reviewed and there is no indication of when the festival would be held.

The food truck policy

The food truck policy was announced to promote night-time economy in Delhi, expand business opportunities for restaurants and cafes, and create employment opportunities.

It was supposed to be notified in October 2022 and the target was to identify five land parcels and start 25 food trucks in the current financial year.

The scheme, though, is awaiting cabinet approval to nominate the Delhi tourism department as the nodal agency to execute the project.

Four world class city forests

The outcome budget also showed that the government is yet to undertake the promised development of four world class city forests in the capital. The government had announced the project in April last year.

Four city forests — Mitraon in west Delhi, Alipur in north Delhi, Garhi Mandu in north-east Delhi, and Jaunapur in south Delhi — were selected for further development.

According to the outcome budget readout, only 41 per cent of the over 8,500 trees transplanted in Delhi using modern technology in the April-September period have survived.

Promotion of start-ups

For promotion of start-ups an outlay of Rs 50 crore was assigned and the budget had proposed setting up of start-up task force.

The outcome document reads that the council of ministers approved the start-up policy for Delhi during their meeting last year. The policy though is currently being modified for approval by the cabinet. A file has been submitted to higher authorities to establish the start-up task force.

Once the policy is officially announced, start-up registration will commence, says the outcome budget.

Re-development of five iconic markets

The Rozgar Budget allocated Rs 100 crore for re-development and brand-building of five iconic Delhi markets – Kamla Nagar, Sarojini Nagar, Kirti Nagar, Khari Baoli and Lajpat Nagar. The government was supposed to conduct a design competition and award work in December, but the outcome document states: “Cabinet approval is awaited to allocate this scheme to DTTDC.”

When The Federal reached out to the planning department and officials from other departments, it failed to get a response on queries on delays in projects.

Also read: Delhi is India’s most polluted city: Report

The Bharatiya Janata Party, meanwhile, came down heavily on the AAP after it released the outcome budget, saying the ruling party made “false promises”, and that the document was a reflection of AAP’s changing priorities.

However, Jasmine Shah, who was associated with the initiative, writing for a prominent newspaper reflected on how the Delhi government’s outcome budget was a unique effort towards fixing accountability. Outcome-based approach shifts the perspective to the short and long-term outcomes of governance, he said.