In addition to the ongoing project for developing skill of garments workers, it also proposed to create a fund initially with Tk 25 crore for their welfare.

The CG seeks to continue some funds introduced under these programmes that include rehabilitation of acid victims and physically handicapped, and development of garment workers' skills.

Finance Adviser Dr Mirza Azizul Islam in his budget speech said under the proposed budget, poor expecting mothers will get an allowance of Tk 300 per month.

"Initially, 45,000 mothers in 3,000 unions will be brought under the programme. I propose an allocation of Tk 17 crore for this programme in the budget for next fiscal."

This will help ensure safe motherhood, and better health and nutrition of hardcore poor mothers as well as safe birth and sound upbringing of infants, the adviser hoped.

The government has introduced a pilot programme titled 'Maternity Allowance for the Poor Lactating Mothers' to reduce maternal and infant mortality, he said.

The proposed budget seeks to enhance the rate of allowance for widowed and destitute women to Tk 220 from Tk 200 per month while increasing the number of beneficiaries to 7.5 lakh from 6.5 lakh now.

The finance adviser said programmes like Vulnerable Group Development (VGD), stipend for female students, maternity voucher scheme, community-based nutrition and vocational training for women would be expanded further.

"In addition, we propose to allocate Tk 20 crore as micro-credit to generate employment opportunities for women, Tk 10 crore for the Fund for Acid-Burnt Women and the Disabled, and Tk 25 crore for the welfare of RMG workers and another Tk 20 crore for their training to enhance efficiency."

Employment opportunities for 24,000 destitute women in 387 unions will be created under the programme titled 'Rural Employment Opportunities for Protection of Public Property', said the adviser.

In the proposed budget, subsistence allowance for children in orphanages, Shishu Sadan, Shishu Paribar, Chotomoni Nibash and Safe Home has been enhanced to Tk 1,200 from Tk 1,000 each.

Per capita grant for children in privately run orphanages has been increased by Tk 200 and daycare centres are being established for children of low-income families, the adviser mentioned.

The proposed budget seeks to enhance allowances for disabled freedom fighters at all levels by 50 percent and monthly allowance for insolvent freedom fighters to Tk 600 from Tk 500.

"Freedom fighters are the finest children of the soil. We have to be more caring about them," said the adviser.

Allocation for this purpose is Tk 78.20 crore in the present budget. With the new proposals, this will rise to Tk 99.50 crore.

Construction of residential flats for freedom fighters and Freedom Fighter Park will start soon, he said.

The budget also proposes to allocate Tk 52.80 crore for enhancement of the rate of allowance for the disabled to Tk 220 from Tk 200, and for expansion of beneficiary coverage to 200,000 from 166,000.

It also proposes to allocate Tk 5 crore for education of retarded children.

For poor senior citizens, the budget proposes to enhance the rate of allowance to Tk 220 from Tk 200 and extend beneficiary coverage to 17 lakh from 16 lakh.

The adviser said the programme for construction of 15,000 flats on khas land in Dhaka, intended to rehabilitate uprooted people, slum dwellers and low-income families, would be implemented soon.

Bangladesh is one of the few countries working on the modalities of gender sensitive budgeting, he said.

The proposed budget also seeks to increase 'direct and indirect gender equality expenditure together to 24 percent' of it from 22 percent in the present budget, he added.