All bills submitted for payment in the State treasury till March 31 will be cleared by April and May, Finance Minister T.M.Thomas Isaac has said.
Replying to the discussion on the Kerala Appropriation Bill, 2020 in the Assembly on Thursday, Dr.Isaac said the bill discounting facility would be extended to the Kerala Water Authority too. Curbs had been imposed on treasury payments and a 30% Plan cut had been imposed owing to resource crunch, but there was no stagnation. Government contractors were getting their bills cleared through banks. Bill discounting facility had been extended for clearing the payments of local self-government institutions.
The revenue deficit grant of ₹15,000 crore to be provided by the Centre and the annual borrowing facility that would open in April would help overcome the present crisis. No other government at the Centre had slashed the allocations to the State as the present NDA government. The Assembly then passed the Bill.
