State spending expected to grow at slowest pace in 13 years: Motilal Oswal

In 2016-17, it was government spending that had done the heavy lifting

Gross value added (GVA) by public administration, defence and other services, which together comprises government spending, grew by a staggering 11.2 per cent, lifting overall GVA growth to 6.7 per cent. 

But this is unlikely to be the case this time around. 

According to a study by Motilal Oswal, 17 major states have budgeted for a mere 10.8 per cent rise in spending, compared with 19 per cent last year. This, as the report points out, is the slowest pace in 13 years.

As state governments together account for over 57 per cent of general government expenditure, this is likely