Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao opined that the state’s growth rate is affected due to the lopsided policies adopted by the Union Government.
If the Central Government achieved the progress equal to the Telangana state, the state’s GSDP would have increased by another Rs 3 lakh crore and the total would be Rs 14.50 lakh crore, KCR said after chairing the five-hour long cabinet meeting held on comprehensive discussion on state Economic situation at Pragati Bhavan here on Thursday night.
Officials informed the Cabinet that the state has registered 15.3 percent growth rate in the state’s revenue in this financial year.
KCR said the state had registered growth despite the funds due to the state under Centrally Sponsored Schemes (CSS ) and various schemes from the central government decreased by (minus) 12.9 percent.
Delay in the release of central funds to the states is taking place due to the introduction of a new system of SNA ( System of National Accounts) accounts, the Chief Minister said not only this, the FRMB limits are not being finalized in time and also enforcing cuts in the limits.
The state revenues would have been increased further and register a growth rate of 22 percent if there is no cuts in the FRMB limits, Rao said.
State Finance Department officials explained that the state has received Rs 47,312 crores of funds under CSS in the last 8 years and under the Rythu Bandhu scheme alone, Rs 58,024 crores of crop investment assistance has been provided to the farmers.
In the last financial year, the state government has spent Rs.1.84 lakh crore and out of which only Rs 5,200 crore have been received under CSS schemes. It means that less than 3 percent of the total expenditure of the state has received funds under the central schemes, the Chief Minister said.
Telangana state contributed 5 percent of the country’s income although the state‘s population is only 2. 5 per cent in the total country’s population, he said.
Officials informed the Cabinet that Telangana stood number one in the country with 11.5 percent growth in state tax revenue.
State finance officials informed the cabinet that the income of the Telangana state in 2014-15, the first year of formation of Telangana state, was Rs 62,000 crore and it has been increased to Rs 1. 84 lakh crore last year.
In just seven years, the state registered 3 times of growth and stood number one in the country, the officials added.
