Presenting a Budget of Rs 2.91 lakh crore for the year 2024-25 in the state Assembly on Thursday, Deputy Chief Minister and Finance Minister Bhatti Vikramarka Mallu stated that the Congress government is raising loans to repay the debt incurred during the previous regime. Mallu outlined a revenue expenditure of nearly Rs 2.21 lakh crore and a capital expenditure of Rs 33,487 crore. The total revenue is estimated at Rs 2,90,814 crore, including open market loans of over Rs 57,000 crore. Of the total revenue expenditure, Rs 17,730 crore will be allocated for interest payments this fiscal year.
The first full-time Budget presented by the new Congress government not only reflected its priorities but also served as a critique of the previous BRS government led by K Chandrasekhar Rao. KCR, as he is popularly known, attended the Assembly for the first time since the government changed in Telangana but the Leader of Opposition dismissed the Budget, saying it was just grandiloquent without substance, pointing out that no new scheme was announced.
In his Budget speech, Mallu highlighted the substantial increase in the state’s debt since its formation a decade ago. He said, “Since the formation of our government, we have raised loans of Rs 35,118 crore whereas we have repaid loans of Rs 42,892 crore. In effect, we have repaid a higher amount of Rs 7,774 crore than the loans we have raised and demonstrated our sincerity to the people. The previous government reduced the state to such a sad state that loans had to be raised to repay loans,” the Deputy Chief Minister said.
While blaming the previous government, he admitted that the state of government finance was precarious. “The substantial rise in debt relative to income growth suggests a heavy dependence on borrowing to fund expenditures, potentially endangering fiscal sustainability. The persistent rise in debt far outstripping income gains indicates that without stringent fiscal reforms, Telangana’s economic health could be at risk, necessitating measures to balance expenditure with revenue generation and reduce dependence on borrowing,” he added, even though his own government was also facing criticism for its welfare schemes, which were adding to the burden on the exchequer.
He also observed there was gross inequality among districts. “Compared to the national per capita income, Telangana’s per capita income is higher by Rs 1,64,063. At the same time, there is gross inequality among various districts… This indicates that the economic development among districts is grossly unequal,” he said.
While the Congress government has made substantial allocation in education and minority welfare (Rs 3,003 crore), it also allocated Rs 10,000 crore for infrastructure in Hyderabad city. The Musi Riverfront Development project, a pet proposal of Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy, will also be taken up at the cost of Rs 1,500 crore along with the metro in the Old City area for Rs 500 crore. It proposes to revive the ecosystem around river Musi with economic zones and recreational spaces along with better living standards for those residing by it.
KCR dismissed the Budget with customary sarcasm, saying it was just political speech and even “storytelling” and wondered where did the government delineate its agricultural, industrial, or IT policy. He complained that no new scheme had been introduced while the existing welfare schemes, such as Dalit Bandhu, were discontinued.