Lucknow: Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mulayam Singh will distribute saris worth Rs 2.5 billion (Rs 250 crores) to poor women, one of the many largesse planned for the elections in the state early next year.
This is explicitly laid down in the provisions of the supplementary budget to be taken up for approval in the on-going session of the state assembly.
"Saris would be distributed to all married women belonging to families living below the poverty line," says the provision.
Among the other sops included in the supplementary budget is the allocation of Rs 4.1 billion (Rs 410 crore) towards the recently announced additional dearness allowance to the state government's 1.7 million employees.
And to demonstrate that charity begins at home, Mulayam has also made a provision of Rs 1.2 billion ( Rs 120 crore) for purchasing a small plane and a helicopter for the chief minister's fleet that already has half a dozen aircraft.
The two official bungalows of the Chief Minister of this otherwise fund-starved state will receive an additional grant of Rs 4 million (Rs 40 lakh) towards the upkeep and maintenance of the buildings for which a whopping amount of Rs 30 million (Rs 3 crore) was released last year as well.
Further, a fertiliser-testing laboratory is to be set up in the chief minister's hometown Etawah at a cost of Rs 16 million (Rs 1.6 crore).
An outlay of Rs 60 million (Rs 6 crore) has been made to meet the annual fuel expenses of vehicles attached to visiting VIPs and political leaders accorded the status of ministers.
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