The Sikkim Assembly recently passed a Rs 26 lakh deficit but tax free Budget for the year 2007-2008 with renewed thrust on infrastructure development and capacity building. The receipts for the year stood at Rs 5,220.85 crore, whereas the total disbursements excluding recoveries amount to Rs 5,221.11 crore causing a shortfall of Rs 26 lakh.

Earlier, while presenting the Budget in the House, Chief Minister Pawan Kumar Chamling said the Budget is so designed as to ensure completion of all the infrastructure projects sanctioned during the 10th Five Year Plan.
“We are saddled with huge commitments on account of spillover liabilities from the 10th Plan involving various sectors particularly with regard to infrastructure,” Chamling said, adding that a huge chunk of the budgetary allocations will be spent on fulfilling these liabilities.

Mega projects in the infrastructure sector like the airport project at Pakyong in East Sikkim, double-laning of National Highway 31-A, rail link upto Rangpo and a range of mega hydel power projects will be taken up on a priority basis during the coming financial year.

The Chief Minister also said the Budget had the provision for setting up a directorate of capacity building in the state to create a workforce capable of taking up employment opportunities in sectors other than government jobs in the state.
Mr. Chamling said he would allocate Rs 10 crore to this directorate and all the departments will allocate at least two per cent of their annual expenditure for funding capacity-building programmes.