BUDGET BY ASSIGNED REVENUES 145
having fallen short of the estimated expenditure the Government of India agreed to make the following assignments to the Government of the Punjab in order to restore balance
| in its budget:— | Col2 | Col3 | Col4 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Assignment | Less Share of Improvement in Net Revenue from Excise, Stamp, Law and Justice | Net Assignment |
| 1877-8 ... ... 1878-9 ... ... 1879-80 ... ... | Rs. 65,70,000 53,40,000 53,10,000 | Rs. 107,000 85,000 ... | Rs. 64,63,000 52,55,000 53,10,000 |
It should be noted that the Government of Madras refused to undertake the responsibility of a provincial Budget based upon the new principle of assigned revenues. It preferred to remain on the old basis. Provincial Budgets of Assam and Burma are not included in this chapter. As the principle involved in their constitution appertains to the study undertaken in the following chapter it is deemed expedient not to include them in the present.
Before closing the study of the second stage in the development of Provincial Budgets it is advisable to take stock of the results achieved during its prevalence from the standpoint of sufficiency to the Provincial Governments and gain to the Imperial exchequer. The following is illustrative of the results of this stage from the standpoint of sufficiency to the provinces :—
| Provinces | Annual Surpluses or deficits | Col3 | Col4 | Col5 | Col6 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1877-8 | 1878-9 | 1879-80 | 1880-1 | 1881-2 | |
| C.P. ... ... Bengal ... N.W.P. and Oudh ... Punjab ... Bombay ... | £ 5,992 173,380 4,469 18,578 —609,672 | £ 7,049 158,932 237,100 48,195 61,249 | £ —28,133 82,523 320,729 7,017 —11,201 | £ 2,956 —11,313 280,790 59,497 37,855 | £ 95,221 255,189 667,613 135,979 418,783 |
Compiled from the Finance and Revenue Accounts of the Government of India.
From this it is clear that except in Bombay the funds provided by the Imperial Government proved not only sufficient for the purpose of carrying on the services incorporated in the Provincial Budgets, but were such as to afford a safe margin of revenue over