Budget Session Turns Into a Battlefield: 77 Motions, A Failed ₹183 Crore Scheme and an LPG Uproar
The Chhattisgarh Assembly's ongoing budget session has transformed into a sharp arena of accountability, with opposition and ruling party MLAs filing 77 attention motions covering everything from rising knife attack incidents and law and order failures to cattle breeding policy, milk production targets, and farmer welfare. But the session's most explosive moments came from two specific flashpoints — the stunning failure of the ₹183 crore CHIRAG project, and a walkout over the LPG cylinder crisis.
Cow Protection, Artificial Insemination and Milk Production: The Q&A That Exposed Policy Gaps
BJP MLA Ajay Chandrakar led a sustained line of questioning on the state's cattle policy during Question Hour, extracting some revealing answers from Agriculture Minister Ramvichar Netam.
On the scale of the problem: Chandrakar asked how many female bovine animals exist in Chhattisgarh, how artificial insemination is being managed for 53 lakh female cattle, and what vaccination arrangements are in place. Netam responded that sub-centres and veterinary dispensaries exist across the state for artificial insemination, and that efforts are being made to develop better breeds to increase milk production and bring it up to the national average.
On self-sufficiency: Chandrakar pressed further — why is the state not self-sufficient in milk production? Are the 1,585 institutions involved in cattle development government or private? When will 412 new centres be opened? Netam replied that sex-sorted semen is being used to increase the production of female calves, work is ongoing under the National Gokul Mission, and private sector participation is also being sought.
On targets versus achievement: Chandrakar asked what the annual artificial insemination target is and how many animals have actually been covered. Netam's response was telling — he said detailed information would be provided separately. In other words, a clear answer on targets versus ground achievement was not available on the floor of the House.
Opposition leader Charndas Mahant added another dimension — asking whether the 53 lakh figure includes village heifers and what specific scheme covers them. Former Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel followed up on the CHIRAG project's fund utilisation and what the government actually achieved in 2024–25.
The CHIRAG Project Scandal: ₹183 Crore, Only 1% Used, Now Shut Down
This was the session's most damaging revelation. The ₹183 crore CHIRAG project — a centrally funded initiative for cattle and rural animal husbandry improvement — has been shut down before completion.
Ajay Chandrakar asked the pointed question: why was the project closed ahead of schedule and who is responsible?
Netam's answer was blunt: the Central Government reviewed the project's progress, found it below expectations, issued a notice, and shut it down.
The most shocking detail came from Netam himself — only 1% of the entire ₹183 crore allocation was actually utilised. The state government was informed of the closure on March 18, 2025.
Chandrakar then demanded accountability — which officials are responsible for the project's failure and what action will be taken against them? Netam said an inquiry would be conducted, accountability fixed, and necessary recommendations forwarded.
This is a ₹183 crore scheme that achieved next to nothing. It was funded by the Centre, managed by the state, and shut down after spending just a fraction of its budget. The families of 53 lakh female cattle in Chhattisgarh — and the farmers who depend on them for livelihood — are the real victims of this administrative failure.
77 Attention Motions: Law, Order and Farmer Issues Dominate
Beyond the cattle debate, 77 attention motions were submitted in the session covering a wide range of public concerns.
Notably, MLAs Ajay Chandrakar, Dharmajit Singh and Dharamlal Kaushik have filed motions to draw the Home Minister's attention to the rising number of knife attack incidents across the state — a law and order concern that has been escalating in urban and semi-urban Chhattisgarh. Motions covering issues related to farmers, livestock keepers, and constituency-level grievances were also among the 77 filed.
LPG Crisis Causes Congress Walkout, One MLA Suspended
The Assembly session also witnessed a dramatic confrontation over the commercial LPG cylinder shortage gripping the state.
Opposition leader Dr. Charndas Mahant raised the issue directly — stating that people and hotel operators across Chhattisgarh are struggling due to non-availability of cylinders. BJP MLA Ajay Chandrakar countered that the LPG matter falls outside the House's jurisdiction, triggering fierce sloganeering from both sides. The uproar escalated to the point where one Congress MLA was suspended from the session.
The irony was sharp — a state Assembly debating cow breeding policy and ₹183 crore scheme failures while hotel owners outside the building cannot get gas to cook food.
What These Three Issues Reveal About Chhattisgarh's Governance
Read together, the cattle policy questions, the CHIRAG failure, and the LPG crisis paint a coherent picture of the challenges facing Chhattisgarh's rural and small business economy right now:
- A cattle development mission funded at ₹183 crore that barely got off the ground, leaving farmers without promised support for breeding and milk production
- A milk self-sufficiency target that remains unmet, with the state still below the national average despite years of policy attention
- A commercial gas shortage hitting the hospitality and food service sector hard at the peak of wedding and business season
- A law and order concern around rising violent crime that MLAs felt urgent enough to raise through formal attention motions
Bottom Line
The Chhattisgarh budget session's Question Hour delivered genuine accountability moments — particularly the CHIRAG project exposure, where a ₹183 crore Central scheme was allowed to collapse with 99% of its funds unspent. The Agriculture Minister's commitment to fix accountability is the right response. What matters now is whether that inquiry actually names officials, imposes consequences, and ensures the state does not repeat the same failure with the next centrally funded scheme.
Seventy-seven attention motions in a single session signal that MLAs across party lines feel the pressure of unresolved public grievances. Whether the government's responses match the urgency of those grievances is what the coming weeks of the budget session will determine.
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