Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar on Monday wrote to the Centre demanding a ₹25,000 crore special package for Maharashtra, which is facing a major economic crisis owing to restrictions in place to contain the spread of COVID-19.
Mr. Pawar also demanded that the State’s Goods and Services Tax dues of ₹16,654 crore be released before March 31. Mr. Pawar addressed the letter to Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and Union Ministers Nitin Gadkari and Prakash Javadekar, who are in charge of Maharashtra.
In his letter, Mr. Pawar said, “The three-week-long lockdown has brought the industry, trade and service sectors to a standstill. Ideally, the last month of the financial year adds a sizeable amount of money to the State treasury, but the crisis due to ‘corona’ and the lockdown have completely stopped the State’s income. It has also dragged the State into a major economic crisis.”
Of the ₹16,654 crore dues, ₹1,687 crore is the State’s share in the Central taxes and ₹14,654 crore is the various grants given to the State by the Centre.
