Kerala to cut spending to address coronavirus crisis: Thomas Isaac

The state government has set up a committee headed by Sunil Mani, director of the Centre For Development Studies, to assess the fiscal situation, and has sought a report in a month's time

The Kerala government is looking at ways to cut its expenditure significantly in order to deal with the current financial situation of the state, which may see the worst recession since its formation in 1956, said state Finance Minister T M Thomas Isaac.

According to a report on economic and fiscal shock of Covid-19 on Kerala by Gulati Institute of Finance and Taxation (GIFT)— an autonomous institution of the state government — the state’s revenue deficit is expected to rise up to Rs 48,657 crore and fiscal deficit to up to Rs 62,751 crore in fiscal year 2020-21.

The state government has