BUDGETARY proposals placed by the finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman on February 1, 2022, for the fiscal year 2022-23 provided no relief to the people, especially those living in urban centres who were severely hit by the pandemic. With meteoric spiked unemployment in the last few years, it was expected that this year budget will at least address this problem partially. However, the much-awaited cry for an urban employment guarantee remained unaddressed. It is estimated that over 200 million people are without work, most of them in the urban centres.