Mumbai: Even as the State government announced ₹20,000 crore in the supplementary demands for the loan waiver, which were raised on the first day of the monsoon session, the finance department is not sure of the means to raise the money.
An internal note of the department has claimed that the government has no additional resources to raise ₹27,998.59 crore of the total supplementary demands of ₹33,533.85 crore.
A copy of the note, available with The Hindu , mentions that even though the supplementary demands of ₹33,533.85 crore have been raised, the actual load on the government will be of ₹27,998.59 crore.
The revelations raise questions over the government’s claim of awarding the waiver and also about the reimbursement to the local bodies following introduction of the Goods and Services Tax, resulting in cancellation of octroi, local body tax.
In a statement made in the Assembly on Tuesday, Finance Minister Sudhir Munguntiwar said, “The government will raise ₹20,000 crore of additional fund via loans from the open market.”
According to sources in the finance department, the State has no option but to opt for loans to fulfil all the financial promises.
“With successive decisions by the Centre, the income sources are depleting and we are depending more on Delhi. Even though certain decisions have to be made, the financial arrangement is going to be a big question,” he said.
Former Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan, while commenting on the supplementary demands, said the government will have to raise the money by cutting on revenue expenditure which it has already announced.
