In a pre-Budget chat, Mr. Balagopal — whose sixth Budget is also the final one of the present Left Democratic Front (LDF) government as Kerala moves towards Assembly elections — said his presentation on Thursday would reflect the LDF’s conviction that it would continue in power in the State. “We expect the full support of the people. The Budget will be realistic and practical,” he said.
On the LDF manifesto promise of raising social security pensions to ₹2,500 and the pay revision demand for government employees, Mr. Balagopal hinted that the Budget would have positive decisions for these sectors as well as all others. At the same time, the Minister was quick to add that these were also tied to the availability of resources.
