States

From bhikshus of Ashokan 3rd century BC and medieval Sufis to Oxfam, Omidyar and Soros now, non-state actors have any real power only when they work in conjunction with a real state

The ministry is organising a two-day labour ministers' conference in the national capital on January 29-30, with participation from all the states and UTs

Fiscal profligacy by poll-bound states needs to be watched closely, as higher spending on welfare measures will impact capital expenditure over the coming years, a Swiss brokerage said on Friday. A total of 11 states have gone to polls or are likely to have elections soon, the report by UBS Securities said, adding that four of them -- Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Odisha -- have increased their fiscal deficit targets. "The recent fiscal profligacy seen in poll-bound states should be watched closely," the report said. In the last few years, states managed to control their fiscal deficit under the 3 per cent level proposed by the Fifteenth Finance Commission, the report said, acknowledging that the Centre has also been bringing down the fiscal deficit. The poll-bound states are increasing their welfare spending and stimulus, which has led to a widening in their aggregate FY25 fiscal deficit estimates by 0.20 per cent in the budgets presented in June or July, it said. "W

This comes a day after the ten-member National Task Force (NTF), appointed by the Supreme Court, met for the first time to formulate a protocol for the safety and security of healthcare professionals

The court ruled that the payment of these demands shall be staggered in instalments over a period of 12 years, commencing from April 1, 2026

With many parts of the country in the grip of a heatwave, the Centre has asked states and Union territories to conduct follow-up reviews to ensure dedicated heat stroke rooms at all health facilities besides implementing critical fire and electrical safety measures. Dr Atul Goel, Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS), Union Health Ministry conducted a virtual review meeting with states and UTs to assess the preparedness for heatwave conditions and fire safety measures adopted by various healthcare facilities across the country. State Health departments have been issued advisories and asked to implement guidelines on strengthening health systems preparedness for Heat-Related Illnesses (HRI) besides issuing a public health advisory with do's and don'ts. They have been urged to follow the guidelines on emergency cooling for severe heat-related illnesses and autopsy findings in heat related deaths. State health departments have been asked to adhere to the joint communication fr

Says states are making sure the industry does not have to face different rules while moving from one state to another

The move comes after Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya chaired a review meeting on Wednesday

In the first quarter of the financial year 2023-2024, states had borrowed 84 per cent of the notified amount of Rs 1.9 trillion

Under the new norms, banks must categorise bonds as "held-to-maturity" on a permanent basis, with the exception of 5 per cent of the portfolio that can be withdrawn throughout the year

The borrowing cost for states continued to fall for the third week in a row, with the weighted average price falling to 7.44 per cent in the debt auction on Tuesday. The cost had remained at a two-year high throughout January sniffing at 7.8 per cent. However, the overall cost has been falling since the interim Union Budget, which forecast a lower than anticipated borrowing and a fiscal deficit target of 5.8 per cent for this fiscal and 5.1 per cent for the next financial year. The weighted average cut-off rate eased by 2 basis points to 7.44 per cent on Tuesday, with issuance trailing the indicated amount for the fifth consecutive week, Icra Rating said in a note. Twelve states raised Rs 32,800 crore through State Government Securities (SGS) on February 27 and the amount is 27 per cent lower than the highest-ever weekly auction of Rs 45,200 crore indicated for this week in the fourth quarter auction calendar. Both limited supply and the falling overall interest rates pulled down

Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Monday came down heavily on allegations that the Centre is withholding funds meant for non-BJP governed states, saying it is a "politically-vitiated narrative" that "vested interests" are happy to go about saying. Replying to a question by Congress leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury in the Lok Sabha on the Karnataka government's claim that the Centre is not releasing funds due to it, Sitharaman said such a situation cannot happen as the "system is well placed" and the central government works according to recommendations of the Finance Commission. "This apprehension that some states are being discriminated against is a politically-vitiated narrative which, I am sorry to say, vested interests are happy to go about saying," she said during Question Hour. Sitharaman added that no Union finance minister can play with the Finance Commission's recommendations. "This is just not a possibility that any finance minister can intervene to say that 'I do

The Union government will provide Rs 75,000 crore as interest-free loan for 50 years to support reforms by states for realising the vision of 'Viksit Bharat'. The government has set a vision to make India a developed nation by 2047. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman made the proposal in this regard in her Budget speech in the Lok Sabha on Thursday. Many growth and development enabling reforms are needed in states for realizing the vision of 'Viksit Bharat', she said. "A provision of seventy-five thousand crore rupees as fifty-year interest-free loan is proposed this year to support those milestone-linked reforms by the state governments," the minister said. According to the Budget documents, total resources being transferred to the states, including the devolution of states' share, grants/loans and releases under centrally sponsored schemes in 2024-25 (Budget Estimates), stand at Rs 22,22,264 crore. This is an increase of Rs 4,13,848 crore over actuals of fiscal year ...

The total loan guarantees extended by 17 major states to their entities have more than tripled to Rs 9.4 lakh crore by FY23 from Rs 3 lakh crore in FY17, says a report. While guarantees are contingent liabilities, they may pose a risk to states' fiscal health if a substantial proportion of the stock needs to be serviced by them, warranting robust guarantee monitoring and prudent extension of guarantees in the future so that the financial system as a whole remains resilient. States often sanction and issue on behalf of their various enterprises, cooperative institutions, and urban local bodies guarantees in favour of their lenders which are generally banks or other financial institutions. The total loan guarantees extended by the 17 major states to their entities have more than tripled to Rs 9.4 lakh crore as of FY23 from Rs 3 lakh crore in FY17. This is equivalent to the entire increase in such guarantees of these states during FY2017-22, Icra Ratings chief economist Aditi Nayar sai

The weighted average rates of state debt continued to remain at an over two-year high of 7.72 per cent at the second weekly auction of the quarter on Tuesday, making it the highest so far this fiscal. Accordingly, the spread between 10-year state bonds and benchmark G-sec yield also remained firm at 54 bps, with both inching up by 1 bps from the previous week, according to a note by Icra Ratings' chief economist Aditi Nayar. Nine states raised Rs 19,300 crore from the market selling government securities, which was 34 per cent lower than the amount indicated for this week in the auction calendar. Despite lower supply, the weighted average cut-off inched up to 7.72 per cent, which is the highest so far in FY24 from 7.71 per cent last week. The payout increased in spite of the weighted average tenor remaining unchanged at 11 years. Both this had the spread between the cut-off of the 10-year state bonds and the 10-year benchmark G-sec yield inching up to 54 bps from 53 bps last week,

An objective analysis of these rules indicates that with respect to many of the aspects, there is too much divergence not only between the central and state/UT rules but also among the state rules

They allot little money from their own budgets and underutilise the money the centre gives them