Skip to main content

Gender budgeting? Central allocation for 2015-16 lowest in five years

By Our Representative
A fresh analysis of the Gender Budget Statement (GBS) for 2015-16 has revealed that the total allocation under it as proportion of the Union budget has been progressively going down, with 2015-16 being the lowest of the last five years.
In 2015-16, the analysis, carried out by a reputed non-profit organization, says that allocation under gender budgeting is 0.94 per cent of the Union budget, as against 1.04 per cent in 2014-15, 1.53 per cent in 2013-14, 1.32 per cent in 2012-13 and 1.55 per cent in 2011-12.
Especially referring to specific schemes, under which gender budgeting takes effect, the analysis has found that, in absolute numbers, the allocation for midday meal is down from Rs 3,965 crore in 2014-15 to Rs 2,771 crore in 2015-16; for the Scheme for the Protection and Development of Women from Rs 315 crore to Rs 78 crore; for Rashtriya Uccha Shiksha Abhiyan from Rs 1,500 crore to Rs 1,010 crore; and for the Integrated Child Development Scheme from Rs 10,735 crore to Rs 7,502 crore.
Carried out by the Centre for Budget and Governance Accountability (CBGA), New Delhi, the analysis says the Government of India believes the lower allocation would compensated with “enhanced devolution of Union Taxes to states as recommended by the 14th Finance Commission”, with states asked to "contribute from their enhanced resources”
"However", comments the analysis, "It is important to note that the allocation of resources to these schemes by states would depend on the prioritisation for these by the states." The fact is, "the magnitude of funds meant exclusively for women have declined as a proportion of the Union Budget and GDP in 2015-16. This decline is indicative of the reduced priority for women in the Union Budget."
The analysis further states, "Only three schemes, i.e., Infrastructure Maintenance (Department of Health and Family Welfare), Nirbhaya Fund for Safety of Women (Department of Economic Affairs) and Indira Awas Yojana have allocations exceeding Rs. 1,000 crore. Likewise, only two schemes, Indira Gandhi Matritva Sahyog Yojana (Ministry of Women and Child Development) and Scheme on Women Safety on Public Road Transport from Nirbhaya Fund (Ministry of Road Transport& Highways) have allocations of more than Rs. 100 crore."
According to the analysis, "Most schemes, meant only for women have allocations of less than Rs 100 crore. The need to strengthen budgetary outlays, especially for interventions to address violence against women, has been ignored in Union Budget 2015-16. The Government earlier last year announced the setting up of a One Stop Crisis Centre in each district of the country", which "cannot be met from the allocations in this Budget. The allocations for this scheme stand at Rs 2 core in 2015-16 (BE)."
Further, says the analysis, "Important schemes like Women’s Helpline and Scheme for Assistance to States for Implementation of Protection of Women From Domestic Violence Act, 2005 have not been allocated the necessary outlays, even as there are unutilized funds under the Nirbhaya Fund."
It adds, "Among the schemes by Ministry of Women and Child Development that will have a changed sharing pattern is the Integrated Child Development Service (ICDS). The scheme is being transferred to states, whereby the Union Government will provide capital expenditure (such as expenditure on construction of Anganwadi Centres etc.). The states would be expected to bear the revenue expenditure), which is going to be the large part of expenditure under the scheme."

Comments

TRENDING

Importance of Bangladesh for India amidst 'growing might' of China in South Asia

By Samara Ashrat*  The basic key factor behind the geopolitical importance of Bangladesh is its geographical location. The country shares land borders with Myanmar and India. Due to its geographical position, Bangladesh is a natural link between South Asia and Southeast Asia.  The country is also a vital geopolitical ally to India, in that it has the potential to facilitate greater integration between Northeast India and Mainland India. Not only that, due to its open access to the Bay of Bengal, Bangladesh has become significant to both China and the US.

Swami Vivekananda's views on caste and sexuality were 'painfully' regressive

By Bhaskar Sur* Swami Vivekananda now belongs more to the modern Hindu mythology than reality. It makes a daunting job to discover the real human being who knew unemployment, humiliation of losing a teaching job for 'incompetence', longed in vain for the bliss of a happy conjugal life only to suffer the consequent frustration.

Buddhist shrines were 'massively destroyed' by Brahmanical rulers: Historian DN Jha

Nalanda mahavihara By Our Representative Prominent historian DN Jha, an expert in India's ancient and medieval past, in his new book , "Against the Grain: Notes on Identity, Intolerance and History", in a sharp critique of "Hindutva ideologues", who look at the ancient period of Indian history as "a golden age marked by social harmony, devoid of any religious violence", has said, "Demolition and desecration of rival religious establishments, and the appropriation of their idols, was not uncommon in India before the advent of Islam".

'BBC film shows only tip of iceberg': Sanjiv Bhatt's daughter speaks at top US press club

By Our Representative   The United States' premier journalists' organisation, the National Press Club (NPC), has come down heavily on Prime Minister Narendra Modi for recent "attacks on journalists in India." Speaking at the screening of an episode of the BBC documentary “India: The Modi Question,” banned in India, in the club premises, NPC President Eileen O’Reilly said, “Since Modi came to power we have watched with frustration and disappointment as his regime has suppressed the rights of its citizens to a free and independent news media."

Natural farming: Hamirpur leads the way to 'huge improvement' in nutrition, livelihood

By Bharat Dogra*  Santosh is a dedicated farmer who along with his wife Chunni Devi worked very hard in recent months to convert a small patch of unproductive land into a lush green, multi-layer vegetable garden. This has ensured year-round supply of organically grown vegetables to his family as well as fetched several thousand rupees in cash sales.

Over-stressed? As Naveen Patnaik turns frail, Odisha 'moves closer' to leadership crisis

By Sudhansu R Das  Not a single leader in Odisha is visible in the horizon who can replace Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik. He has ruled Odisha for nearly two and half decades. His father, Biju Patnaik, had built Odisha; he was a daring pilot who saved the life of Indonesia’s Prime Minister Sjahrir and President Sukarno when the Dutch army blocked their exit.

Hillary Clinton, Al Gore, Ban Ki-moon, others ask Bangladesh PM to 'protect' Yunus

Counterview Desk  A campaign has been launched to support Bangladesh-based economist, micro-finance guru and Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus, seeking signatures from citizens across the globe in order to “protect” his work, life and safety.

Electricity sharing opens up new window for India’s eastern neighbourhood engagement

By Sufian Asif* Today, challenges like climate change, pandemics, energy reliance, economic crisis, and many more are concerning us. No nation can overcome these obstacles without the assistance and collaboration of other nations. Most importantly, many of these problems have international repercussions. South Asia is facing much more difficulty when compared to other regions. In South Asia, we have some regional organizations, but they are ineffective.

Regional political dynamics 'leading to' institutional violence in SAARC University

By Sandeep Pandey*  South Asian University is a university set up in Delhi by member countries of South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation – India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bhutan, Afghanistan and Maldives – which is open to students from all these countries. However, as SAARC is receiving little attention these days because of regional political dynamics, it appears as if SAU has lost significance too. Because of the hiatus in peace process between India and Pakistan, the Board of Governors of this University is dysfunctional.

'Vulgar display of wealth': Govt of India using G20 presidency for political, electoral gains

Counterview Desk  Seeking endorsement for a public statement on India's G20 Presidency, several people’s movements, trade unions and other civil society groups have come together to say that not only will G20 and its priorities “will worsen economic, social and climate crisis”, already, India’s presidency is being used “for vulgar display of pomp & for electoral gains.”