CHANDIGARH, India: Punjab Finance Minister, Mr. Balwant Singh, disclosed that the State police budget for the total year has already been spent in the first six months. He said that mounting expenditure of the security forces will seriously jeopardise the State economy. Punjab State is forced to spend beyond its means on the security forces, It had to buy new vehicles for the force which has added to the expenditure on fuel. He said that Punjab is required to spend additional 60 lakhs on the battalions belonging to CR. PF. This does not cover their expenditure on the petrol and diesel which is even more. He said
that considering the near bankrupt state of the economy in Punjab, Centre should bear the expenditure of its forces deployed in Punjab.
He said that the police budget which in 1979 was only 18 crores has now gone up to 91 crores and it is likely to touch 150 crores in the next year. He also said that the expenditure on Home Guards Used to be negligible but this too has totalled three crores now, interestingly, disregarding the economy considerations; the State government has demanded 60 more battalions of the C.R.PF, to be deployed in the State.
Article extracted from this publication >> October 17, 1986
