Former MLA from Kannad (Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar district) Harshvardhan Jadhav on Tuesday reached the Vidbhan Bhavan podium raising concerns over the state’s finances. Claiming that he was not allowed to speak as he was an ex-legislator, Jadhav contented that the state’s calculation for receipts has gone awry as GST rate cut would lead to a sharp decline this fiscal. This may eventually put the govt in a tight spot when it comes to incurring obligatory expenditure like payment of salaries, pensions, or interest on loans.
According to Jadhav, the state, which was supposed to net Rs. 4.08 lakh crore as revenue (excluding borrowings) based on the earlier trends, will now get around Rs. 3.18 lakh crore instead due to the GST rate cut. Jadhav relied on a reply to his letter by the additional chief secretary (ACS) in June this year and the state budget document for 2025-26. Pointing out to the budget papers, he said the state has estimated an income of Rs. 7.57 lakh crore including debt. On the other hand, a reply to his letter by the finance dept said that the state’s revenue would come to Rs. 5.6 lakh crore (excluding debt) during this fiscal. The monthly collections of Rs. 34,000 crore mentioned in the letter showed that the state would end up getting only Rs. 4.08 lakh crore. The rate cut will further reduce to Rs. 3.18 lakh crore, he claimed. This leaves a major gap even after considering the borrowings he said.
As Jadhav spoke of the monthly trends, the finance dept letter only had figures till May 2025. To this, Jadhav said he has asked for receipts in the subsequent months but the same were not shared by the govt. Jadhav suggested that the state can get funds from leasing the land at its disposal and has already filed a PIL on these lines.
A 2013 CAG report criticised the state for under-recovery of lease from its properties. “Following that, the state govt submitted before the Supreme Court that it would be leasing properties by inviting open bids. My PIL seeks implementation of the very policy,” he said.
Source #TOI
