The State is grappling with substantial monthly expenditures due to interest payments, totaling ₹17,080 crore by the end of November. This amount represents a staggering 96.34% of the ₹17,729 crore allocated in the budget estimates for interest payments.
Recent provisional data submitted to the Comptroller and Auditor General of India reveals that the State is currently spending nearly ₹2,000 crore monthly on these interest obligations. With only four months remaining in the financial year, forecasts indicate that total interest payments may significantly exceed the budgetary projection of ₹17,729 crore.
As of the end of November, the total receipts for the State reached ₹1.41 lakh crore, which is just over 50% of the ₹2.74 lakh crore outlined in the budget estimates. This figure includes ₹1.03 lakh crore in revenue receipts and ₹37,878 crore in capital receipts. Notably, borrowings and other liabilities accounted for ₹37,850 crore, playing a substantial role in capital receipts after eight months.
However, non-tax revenues and grants-in-aid fell markedly short of expectations. By the end of November, the non-tax revenue totaled ₹5,217 crore, which is only 14.82% of the ₹35,208 crore projected in the budget. Similarly, grants-in-aid amounted to ₹4,529 crore, representing a mere 20.93% of the anticipated ₹21,656 crore for the year.
On a brighter note, revenue generated from State Excise duties was notably strong at ₹12,364 crore for the first eight months, although it has yet to reach the halfway mark of the ₹25,617 crore target for the current fiscal year. The State’s share of Central taxes also showed robust performance, totaling ₹11,472 crore, or 62.41% of the budget estimate of ₹18,384 crore.
Despite these revenues, the State reported a revenue deficit of ₹14,288 crore over the eight-month period, contrasting sharply with the projected surplus of ₹297. Additionally, the fiscal deficit stood at ₹37,850 crore, with the primary deficit reaching ₹20,769 crore, accounting for 65.88% of the budget estimate of ₹31,525 crore.
