Leader of the Opposition in the Legislative Council and former Finance Minister Yanamala Ramakrishnudu has alleged that the government borrowed about ₹2 lakh crore in the last two years, but has achieved zero development.
“The fiscal profligacy, which has become the YSRCP government’s hallmark, has landed the people in a debt trap,” Mr. Ramakrishnudu said in a release on Saturday.
He said government had imposed a huge burden on the people by increasing various taxes, while the steep hike in the prices of essential commodities made their lives miserable.
“The State’s revenue was just ₹1.50 lakh crore in 2018-19, which increased to ₹1.78 lakh crore in 2020-21. The economic growth was zero, which had left the government with no option but to avail the overdraft facility not once or thrice, but 57 times in 2019-20,” he said.
The revenue deficit went up from ₹13,899 crore in 2018-19 to ₹35,540 crore in 2020-21.
Mr. Ramakrishnudu said the alarming situation was evident from the total amount of loans being repaid, far exceeding the capital expenditure.
“Lack of sincere efforts on industrial development and job creation fronts is glaring. Unemployment has risen to 15% in two years. On the other hand, the State has witness a 100% rise in crimes and atrocities,” he said.
Though the TDP government had paltry revenues, it implemented more welfare schemes than what was being claimed by Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy, the TDP leader said.
The ₹2 lakh crore worth of non-performing assets in Amaravati should be brought back to proper use, Mr. Ramakrishnudu demanded, while asserting that the State would have become progressive had the government not taken the retrograde step of shelving the promised capital city project.
