Low level of capital investment is a major handicap for the development and transition of Kerala economy to a higher plane, Finance Minister T.M. Thomas Isaac has said.
“Investment in capital is hardly 1% of the GSDP which is too low when considering the future of Kerala. This is a major concern and the government is committed to enhance it through off-budget funding,” Dr. Isaac said while inaugurating a public lecture series on ‘Kerala Economy in Transition’ jointly organised by the Gulati Institute of Finance and Taxation (GIFT) and Kerala Economic Association (KEA) here on Thursday.
The serious fall in the revenue and increase in expenditure had affected the redistribution of wealth as it happened in the past. Dr. Isaac said off-budget funding was a better option to address these issues. Severe infrastructure deficit was also a major handicap to be addressed quickly, he pointed out.
Kerala’s development policy initiative would wrest mainly on three pillars of democratic decentralisation, infrastructure development through off-budget funding and transforming to a knowledge economy.
Skilling and re-skilling are the big leap forward for the purpose. Through this, the State would be a global hub for knowledge-based services, skilled manpower and service-based industries. The aim is to equip the educated youth to work from home or near home.
