The twelfth day of Chhattisgarh's budget session on Monday turned into one of its most turbulent yet, with the Opposition walking out of the House not once but twice — first over the government's evasive answers on illegal land plotting in Dhamtari and Kanker, and then in protest after their adjournment motion against the renaming of MGNREGA was rejected. Uproar, sloganeering, and a five-minute suspension of proceedings marked a day that laid bare the deepening hostility between the ruling BJP and the Congress benches.

Illegal Plotting: Vague Answers, Furious Opposition

The session opened with Congress MLA Ambika Markam directing pointed questions at Revenue Minister Tankram Verma about illegal land plotting in Dhamtari and Kanker districts. She asked how many complaints had been received between 2024 and January 31, 2026, how many survey numbers had been investigated, and what concrete action had been taken against the guilty.

Verma's response was thin. He told the House that three complaints had been received in Dhamtari and five in Kanker, that eight out of a total 175 survey numbers had been investigated, and that action was still in process. Three patwaris had had their salary increments stopped, and 67 individuals had been served notices.

Former Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel was quick to expose the hollowness of these answers. He pointed out that this very question comes up every session, yet the government has never been able to clearly say how many illegal colonies have been built across the state, how many people have actually been prosecuted, or when the patwari action was taken. For twenty-five minutes, he noted, the minister had been unable to give a direct reply — answering questions about Dhamtari with Kanker's data and vice versa.

Even BJP MLA Ajay Chandrakar pressed the minister, asking him to specify exactly when these colonies were built and when action would follow. Verma's response — that a timeline could not be given and that the revenue department itself was capable of investigating — only added to the frustration. Baghel accused the minister's own department of actively patronising illegal colonies rather than acting against them. The Opposition demanded an EOW investigation and, when that was rejected, walked out of the House in protest.

Nursery and Plantation Row: Question Itself Disputed

The session then moved to a question raised by Congress MLA Chaturi Nand about nursery and plantation work in the Jangalbeda village of Saraipali forest range in Mahasamund. Nand alleged that the original question put to the government had been altered before being taken up in the House — a serious procedural charge.

Baghel backed him up, calling it a grave matter and demanding action against the departmental officials responsible for the change. Forest Minister Kedar Kashyap responded that the question before him related to 2025, and he had answered accordingly. Nand flatly said his original question had nothing to do with 2025. The Speaker intervened to explain that because no specific time period had been mentioned in the original question, a period was fixed to make it answerable — without which the question could not have been admitted at all. The clarification did not fully satisfy the Opposition, but the matter was moved past.

'Ji Ram Ji' Row: Congress Brings Adjournment Motion, House Erupts

The most dramatic moments of the day came during Zero Hour, when Congress brought an adjournment motion opposing the central government's decision to rename MGNREGA — referred to in political shorthand as the 'Ji Ram Ji' controversy, in reference to the new name being proposed. Baghel moved the motion, called the original MGNREGA a far superior scheme in its original form, and demanded that the House admit the motion and hold a full discussion on the issue.

BJP MLA Ajay Chandrakar hit back hard, declaring that the Assembly is not a platform for Opposition politics and not a stage for Congress to run its campaigns. He said the House belongs to the people and its time is too precious to be spent on political theatre. The exchange between both sides quickly escalated — sharp arguments turned to sloganeering, the noise level in the chamber rose sharply, and the Speaker was forced to suspend proceedings for five minutes to restore order.

When the adjournment motion was formally rejected, the Opposition refused to return. Leader of Opposition Dr Charandas Mahant declared that if the people's issues were being raised, then politics would be done — and the Congress benches walked out of the House for the second time in a single day, boycotting the remainder of the session's proceedings.

What It Signals

With just three sitting days remaining before the budget session concludes on March 20, the government faces the task of passing the Appropriation Bill and other pending legislation through a House where the Opposition has now made clear it will disrupt, walk out, and refuse to cooperate at every opportunity. The back-to-back walkouts on Day 12 are not just procedural protests — they are a signal that the Congress intends to carry the energy from the street protests of the morning's assembly gherao straight into the legislative chamber, keeping maximum pressure on the Vishnu Deo Sai government through every available platform until the session's final gavel.

Chhattisgarh Assembly Clears ₹14,655 Crore: Roads Get the Lion's Share, Health and Skills Follow

In a significant legislative move during the ongoing budget session, the Chhattisgarh Assembly approved demands for grants totalling more than ₹14,655.74 crore for the financial year 2026-27, covering key allocations for Public Health Engineering, Urban Administration and Development, Public Works covering roads, bridges, and buildings, and Sports and Youth Welfare. Military.com

The approvals, passed on March 9, 2026, mark a decisive step in Chief Minister Vishnu Deo Sai's government translating its ambitious ₹1.72 lakh crore SANKALP Budget into ground-level action. Chhattisgarh is also celebrating its silver jubilee as a state this year — and the government is clearly using that milestone as a political and developmental launch pad.

Roads First: ₹9,451 Crore to Fix Chhattisgarh's Infrastructure Spine

The single largest allocation in the demand grants goes to physical infrastructure — and rightly so, given how much of Chhattisgarh's rural economy depends on road connectivity.

For Public Works, ₹9,451 crore is earmarked for constructing and repairing roads, bridges, and buildings, with priority given to flyovers in Raipur and divisional headquarters to ease traffic and reduce accidents, and ₹51 crore specifically designated for road safety improvements. Military.com

This is not just a number on paper. Chhattisgarh has long struggled with road connectivity in its tribal and forested belts — and for districts like Bastar, Dantewada, and Sukma, roads are not a convenience, they are a lifeline connecting villages to markets, hospitals, and schools.

The Bastar region alone has received ₹1,109 crore for roads and bridges under the Niyad Nella Nar Yojana Zee News — a targeted intervention for one of India's most geographically and socially complex regions.

Water for Nine Lakh Families: The Public Health Engineering Push

For 2026-27, ₹3,000 crore has been allocated to provide tap water to nearly nine lakh families and complete pending schemes, plus ₹50 crore for operation and maintenance. An additional ₹260 crore targets 44 group water supply schemes under NABARD in low-groundwater rural areas, ₹20 crore for state-funded group scheme maintenance, ₹30 crore for urban project loans, and specific provisions including ₹2 crore for the Sirri scheme in Dhamtari and ₹10 crore for reservoir-based supply to villages. Military.com

This level of granularity — right down to a named scheme in Dhamtari district — suggests that unlike previous budget cycles, this allocation has been designed with implementation specificity rather than broad headline figures.

Health, Skill Development, and Urban Transformation

The SANKALP Budget's approach to human development is structured around three interlocking pillars: healthcare access, skill-building for youth, and urban quality of life.

On healthcare, ₹1,500 crore has been allocated for the Shahid Vir Narayan Singh Ayushman Swasthya Yojana Bloomberg — a state-level health coverage scheme that complements the national Ayushman Bharat programme, with a particular focus on tribal and below-poverty-line populations.

On skill development, new missions including an AI Mission, Nipun Mission, and Sports Excellence Mission have been introduced to drive innovation, skill building, and competitiveness among the state's youth. Windward These are not standalone schemes — they connect directly to the state's ambition of attracting investment in sectors like semiconductors, IT, artificial intelligence, and pharmaceuticals.

For urban development, two new schemes were announced: ₹100 crore for underground electrification and ₹200 crore for Adarsh Shahar Samriddhi Yojana Military.com — both aimed at modernising Chhattisgarh's rapidly growing tier-2 cities.

Deputy CM Arun Sao's Message: Budgets With a Theme, Not Just Numbers

Responding to the House debate, Deputy Chief Minister Arun Sao framed the government's approach in deliberate terms. He highlighted the thematic progression of the BJP-led government's budgets — knowledge in the first year, speed in the second, and resolution — Sankalp — in the third. These efforts align with fulfilling public welfare aspirations and Prime Minister Narendra Modi's promises from day one. Military.com

Sao also used the occasion to draw a sharp political contrast. He said the absence of the opposition Congress from discussions reflects their lack of concern for the state's development, adding that history shows Congress governments did nothing significant for Chhattisgarh. NPR

The Congress boycott of the session — on a day when significant spending decisions affecting millions of citizens were being finalised — does raise legitimate questions about opposition priorities, regardless of one's political leanings.

A Senior BJP MLA Asks the Hard Questions

In a rare display of intra-party accountability, senior BJP MLA Ajay Chandrakar used the assembly discussions to corner his own government, alleging shortcomings in various sectors and demanding rectification. He also called for a stronger 'Made in Chhattisgarh' push, warning that Vision 2047 would remain aspirational unless skill development and industrial policies translate into actual jobs for local youth. NPR

Chandrakar's intervention is notable because it names the critical gap between policy ambition and ground-level delivery — and coming from within the ruling party, it carries more weight than opposition criticism typically does.

Silver Jubilee, Big Vision: What the Numbers Must Deliver

The budget is framed around SANKALP, which builds upon the pillars of GYAN — Poor, Youth, Farmers, Women — and GATI — Governance, Infrastructure, Technology, Industry — with an overarching goal of inclusive development that benefits all sections of society, especially women, farmers, youth, tribal communities, and marginalised groups. Windward

The state is targeting GSDP growth of 8.11% at constant prices to reach ₹3,58,293 crore, with nominal GSDP estimated to grow at 11.57% to reach approximately ₹6.31 lakh crore. Bloomberg These are ambitious targets — achievable if the infrastructure, health, and skill spending translates into real economic activity, and not merely into completed construction projects.

The Bottom Line

Chhattisgarh's assembly has approved a substantial, well-structured package of spending for 2026-27 — with roads getting the biggest slice, water supply coming second, and health and skill development rounding out a budget that, at least on paper, addresses the state's core development needs.

The proof will be in implementation. Roads must actually get built and maintained. Nine lakh families must actually get tap water. And the AI and skills missions must create the jobs that BJP MLA Chandrakar warned about — or Vision 2047 will remain exactly that: a vision.

Chhattisgarh's silver jubilee is a moment of pride. Its citizens deserve a government that matches pride with performance.