Tamil Nadu Finance Minister Palanivel Thiaga Rajan on Thursday said the State government had managed its fiscal situation well, besides ensuring revenue growth and controlling inflation.
“We have ensured that funds are allocated for the necessary social schemes, such as free bus rides, and cut down on unnecessary expenditure. This is essential for ensuring growth in the economy and that the poor are not affected due to heavy inflation,” he told reporters here. As per the statistics released by the Union government, Tamil Nadu’s inflation is at 5%, when compared with the national level of 7%.
Meanwhile, Mr. Thiaga Rajan pointed out that in the first quarter of fiscal 2023, the State’s Own Tax Revenue had increased by over 50%, while the non-tax revenue had grown by 74%. He hinted that the final financial numbers for 2021-22 will be published shortly, and the State is expected to do even better than what was projected in the revised Budget estimates.
“In my Budget speech, I stated that the revenue deficit will be brought down by over ₹7,000 crore in 2021-22. In the final numbers, it is likely two times lower than the projection. As a result, the fiscal deficit also will be brought down to the range of 3.25%-3.35% from the projected range of 3.8% for 2021-22,” the Minister said. The fiscal deficit has been brought down from 4.6% in 2020-21. The borrowing level has been brought down, resulting in a reduction in interest costs.
According to him, Tamil Nadu has performed better than all other States in terms of parameters like managing deficit, growing revenue and controlling inflation. Mr. Thiaga Rajan said the Centre was putting limits on how much States could borrow and also directing how States should generate revenue and spend its money, which was not justifiable.
He also said the Central banks across the globe have been late in their action of increasing interest rates to control inflation, and it should have come six months or one year ago.
