AP expects Rs 10K crore from Centre by month-end

The funds would flow from Centre considering huge revenues were expected to come from the ongoing spectrum bidding and partly from the coal block auctioning

The Union government is likely to release funds worth Rs 10,000 crore to Andhra Pradesh by the end of March as part of terms agreed under the state bifurcation Act, said Union Minister of State for Science and Technology YS Chowdary today here.

"My understanding is that the Rs 7,500-crore revenue deficit mentioned in the state Budget would be compensated along with sanction of Rs 2,000 crore for the capital development this fiscal and tax compensation of Rs 750 crore by this March-end. We are confident of getting them as all this had been agreed to and passed on the floor of Parliament," he said.

The minister said though the state had been pitching for the special category status, it was contemplating measures to secure the status' benefits through other alternative ways, including the grant of I-T exemption for investments under the Minimum Alternate Tax (MAT) in the state by this month.

He expressed confidence the funds would flow from the Centre considering huge revenues were expected to come from the ongoing spectrum bidding and partly from the coal block auctioning. Further, he said the 14th Finance Commission had cleared the state's demand for funds, to which, the "Centre has to either agree or reject".

To a question on whether the state political leadership Telugu Desam Party (TDP) would consider breaking away from the NDA coalition if the Centre did not provide funds as promised, Chowdary said such options were not being considered and added they would fight till the end to secure the commitments given in Parliament.

Also, to a query on what would be the TDP reaction to the ruling Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) party in Telangana becoming part of the NDA coalition, he said, "we expect the existing partners in the coalition would be consulted before taking a decision".

New institutes to begin ops

According to the bifurcation Act, the state had been granted a slew of central-sponsored educational institutes, including IIT, AIIMS, IIM, NIT and tribal university.

"The state would begin accepting admissions in the yet-to-be-established IIT, NIT, Indian Institute of Science (IISc), tribal university, agri varsity in the upcoming academic year operating from other existing campus facilities," said Chowdary. He said law allows these institutes to hold classes from other facilities if the land allocation had been made.