State Finances

These state-specific fiscal vulnerabilities need appropriate policy considerations to enable sustainable fiscal recovery and innovative ways to augment the revenue space

Mahayuti govt faces scrutiny as schemes like Mukhyamantri Majhi Ladki Bahin Yojana strain fiscal resources amid rising unemployment and prices of food items

NCPCR chairperson Priyank Kanoongo said he never called for the closure of madrassas but recommended state funding to these institutions be stopped as they are depriving poor Muslim children of education. He said that Muslim children from improverished backgrounds are often pressured into religious schooling over secular education. We advocate for equitable educational opportunities for all children. In a recent report, the apex child rights body, the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) raised serious concerns about the state of functioning in madrassas and called for stopping the state funding unless they comply with the Right to Education Act. Responding to the functioning of the madrassas, Kanoongo criticised certain groups within the country for "fearing" the empowerment of the poor Muslim community. "There exists a faction in our nation that dreads the empowerment of Muslims. Their fear stems from the anticipation that empowered communities will demand .

The CAG last week raised concerns over unclassified expenditures, questioning state finance secretaries over 'hidden' funds marked for various handouts

Share of biofuel will be 50% of fossil fuels in five years, says minister

Indivjal Dhasmana looks at finances of major civic bodies to analyse why they are underprepared perennially

Chief Minister Vishnu Deo Sai on Thursday sought special central grants for Chhattisgarh, citing its large tribal population, challenging geographical conditions and Naxal activities in parts of the state, at a meeting held with a delegation of the 16th Finance Commission, said a government official. He stressed that additional financial resources are necessary to bring Chhattisgarh, which came into existence in November 2000, on par with developed states, said the official. During the meeting here with the delegation of the central panel led by its chairman Arvind Panagariya, Sai highlighted that Chhattisgarh is a newly-formed state with a large tribal population and faces challenging geographical conditions. It is also affected by Naxal activities, the CM told the delegation, according to the official. The Chief Minister informed the commission about rapid development works being carried out in Naxal-affected areas and effective measures being taken to curb Maoist activities, he

Amount higher than scheduled figure of Rs 32,532 crore, a first in seven weeks

Karnataka politician DK Suresh threatened a call for separate nationhood for southern states after accusing the Centre of disproportionately distributing share of GST and direct tax funds

India's overall inflation rate is higher than all the advanced economies

The implementation of goods and services tax (GST) has led to increased tax buoyancy for the states," the report said

"States are classified as resilient if their fiscal deficit as a percentage of GSDP has decreased from the pre-pandemic to the post-pandemic period," the report says

Development came as tug-of-war between Centre and Bengal govt over release of funds to state intensified with TMC holding protests in the national capital for the second consecutive day

NITI Aayog CEO B V R Subrahmanyam on Monday emphasised on the need to focus on transparency with regard to states' finances as greater transparency will help states raise resources from market at competitive rates. Participating in a seminar organised by the Centre for Social and Economic Progress (CSEP), he also made a case for having a fiscal council like institution to better manage the debt trajectory of the Centre and states. Transparency is more important than uniformity and states should ensure that everything gets reported in some form or the other because the market values transparency, he said. Citing an example, he said, five southern states accounted for 93 per cent of off- budget borrowing last year while all the high deficit states like West Bengal, Punjab and Rajasthan have low off-budget borrowing. "It is all because of market discipline...people are more willing to lend to these five states as compared to West Bengal, Punjab and Rajasthan," he said, adding, there a

When the Union government announced Budget for 2022-23, it had projected revenue to be 8.5% of GDP. A Business Standard analysis of latest report on state finances showed that states are catching up

Maintaining the momentum will be challenging

Food subsidies are a major portion of subsidies provided by states

Greater scrutiny shows that stagnant revenues and unrestrained freebies have left most of them in a perilous position

The previous five years saw the states' share, except for 2019-20, in between 34.5% and 37%, whereas the recommendation was to give them a 42% share

Public sector undertakings (PSUs) in non-strategic sectors shall be considered for privatisation, or they shall be closed, said Minister of State Finance Bhagwat Karat in Rajya Sabha.