TG among States significantly dependent on WMA despite being revenue surplus, says CAG

The Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG) has expressed interest implicit the important dependence of the State connected Ways and Means Advances (WMA), loans from Reserve Bank of India to span abbreviated word mismatches betwixt gross and expenditure.

Telangana was among the 3 States, Rajasthan and Andhra Pradesh being the different two, which availed 62% of the full WMA, including overdraft during 2023-24. The duration of WMA usage successful Telangana was 349 days suggesting adjacent continuous dependence passim the year, the CAG said successful its report.

The State authorities was successful gross surplus during the fiscal yet it availed WMA indicating the mismatch betwixt inflows and ouflows of receipts starring to reliance connected WMA. Continued reliance connected the Ways and Means Advances by the States, including those successful gross surplus points to currency travel absorption challenges. “In galore States, the inclination underscores persistent fiscal pressures, narrowing flexibility wrong the State fund and the request for prudent indebtedness absorption practices to ensure, agelong word sustainability,” the CAG said successful its decadal investigation of State finances.

Telangana on with Chhattisgarh, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh witnessed important summation successful fiscal shortage successful 2023-24 arsenic compared to the erstwhile fiscal.

The State was among 18 others which registered fiscal shortage of 3.41% of the GSDP during 2023-24. This was against the fiscal shortage people of 3% fixed by the XV Finance Commission for the States fiscal consolidation.

The State nevertheless did good successful checking the gross shortage arsenic it achieved gross surplus during the fiscal. Telangana on with six different States targeted zero gross shortage astatine the extremity of 2023-24 and achieved gross surplus. Internal indebtedness was different interest remaining arsenic the largest constituent of the State’s borrowings. Internal indebtedness of each States enactment unneurotic accrued by 229% betwixt 2014-15 and 2023-24 with the summation being uneven crossed the State. Telangana (376%) on with Assam (428%), Chhattisgarh (423%) and Sikkim (364%) reported highest summation successful the interior indebtedness implicit the decade.