LS Passes Supplementary Demands for Addl Spending of Rs 2.35 L Cr, FM Says to be Used for ‘People-centric’ Schemes

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Friday said that bulk of the additional spending sought in the first batch of the supplementary demands for grants would be spend on people-centric schemes to help them amid the coronavirus pandemic. The minister also said that probably for the first time the government has sought such a huge amount in the first batch of the supplementary demands for grants.

Later, Lok Sabha approved the supplementary demands for additional spending of Rs 2.35 lakh crore, which include a cash outgo of Rs 1.66 lakh crore, primarily to meet expenses for combating the COVID-19 pandemic. The minister said the government has sought Rs 40,000 crore towards MNREGA, thus taking the total outgo towards Rs 1 lakh crore, the highest so far. The budget for 2020-21 has earmarked about Rs 61,500 crore for MNREGA.