By Pradeep S Mehta
Every budget is a reboot of last
year’s planning. The 2014-15 budget presented by chief
minister Vasundhara Raje, however, is more than a reboot
where she decidedly takes control over state’s finances,
takes alternate route like PPP model to fund infra
development and tinkers with tax structure in a way that
taxes luxury goods and services to refresh the flagging
economy of state
Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje’s
budget tries to answer questions surrounding the economy of
state through her budget speech, including that of job
creation. However, questions remain over how the government
will achieve the target of creating 15 lakh jobs over the
next five years or how the Public Private Partnerships (PPP)
would be executed to the advantage of the end user. Indeed,
job creation is a core agenda of any government in today’s
dismal scenario, but not the only one. Addressing
availability of basic needs and at the right price is always
a challenge. However, inflation, growth and corruption as
issues played a distinct role when people voted for change
and elected new governments in the state and at the Centre.
Managing expectations will, therefore, remain critical
throughout Vasundhara Raje’s current regime.
Jobs can only be created when
there is a job-oriented growth and a clear strategy to
achieve a goal of doubling of our State GSDP from the
current level of Rs. 4.8 lakh crores to Rs. 10 lakh crores
by 2020. If this path is forged then creating 15 lakh jobs
will fall in line. The how-to-go-about-it has not been spelt
out scientifically in the budget speech.
The achievement of higher growth
needs higher labour intensive manufacturing and services.
For that to happen, many things have to be done in parallel
and not just linear mode in both the hardware and software
of governance. While the government has already announced
reforms in labour laws, the draconian land acquisition law
is yet to be addressed at the level of the state, even if
the centre moves slower.
Land and other related issues
will be a problem in road building agenda. However opening
up the road transport sector to private participation is a
welcome feature, but road safety, which costs three per cent
of our GDP, is tragically missing.
The proposed road regulator
should be a composite body which should oversee all the
three areas: Roads, transport and safety. A PPP approach to
build roads is also welcome but the contracts will need to
be drafted in a pragmatic manner, otherwise we will suffer
the fate of the stalled national highway projects. But
tolling these smaller roads will be a problem with
disruptive local dynamics. Real cost pricing for water too
is welcome, but how can the State ensure water supply when
factors are not in their control and Rajasthan is a problem
state.
Turning some of the city discoms
into PPP ventures too is welcome, but once again care will
be needed to ensure that consumers do not end up in the
frying pan, and that the state does not lose its rightful
revenue share. Our experience with most PPP projects in
infra is that they are grabbed by resourceful people through
crony capitalism and costs are inflated through gold plating
as we see in our major PPP airports or even the oil
exploration contracts.
Many of the reforms proposed
will be opposed by vested interests. Administrative reforms
have not been spoken about at all, and ‘good governance’
features in one para in the context of road transport.
Without administrative reforms the government machinery will
move in a business as usual manner i.e. while the spirit
maybe strong the flesh will be weak.
Our bureaucracy is so opaque and
unresponsive, and for that to change in feudal Rajasthan
will need a clarion call from the Chief Minister. If that is
done, many of the reforms can be carried out by Team
Rajasthan, comprising of all stakeholders including the
civil society, which she speaks about so beautifully in her
speech.
The writer is Secretary General,
CUTS International
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