Orissa Finance Minister Ramakrushna Patnaik on Wednesday presented a tax-free Rs 6.03 billion deficit Budget in the state assembly for the year 2002-03.

Although the year's net transaction was shown as balanced, the opening deficit of Rs 6.03 billion would be carried till the end of the next financial year, he said.

No new tax was proposed in the Rs 219.90 billion Budget estimates.

Presenting the Budget and later talking to newsmen, the minister said the state had been engulfed in a fiscal crisis with a major portion of fresh loans being spent on salary, pension, interest and loan repayment.

Hardly was available any surplus with the government for poverty amelioration programmes, infrastructure creation and economic development, he said.

Stating that time had come for all to ponder over as to how to free the state from this crisis, Patnaik said drastic cut in all non-productive expenditure and revenue generation had become imperative.

Patnaik said a major feature of the new Budget was the government decision to meet the salary, pension and allowances of employees of Plan schemes from the non-Plan account.

A sum of Rs 7.85 billion would thus be available on Plan schemes, he said adding the next year's Plan size had been fixed at Rs 31 billion.