Two days ahead of the Union Budget, a kind of suspense is prevailing over budgetary allocations to Andhra Pradesh, which feels it deserves a special treatment.
The State government is pinning hopes on budget 2018 as the general elections are due in 2019. The State government is hopeful that the Centre will make provision for promises and assurances made in the AP Reorganisation Act. It is also optimistic that that the Centre will release the dues towards revenue deficit faced by the State during 2014-15 financial year.
Speaking to The Hindu , Finance Minister Yanamala Ramakrishnudu maintained that the Centre has to release about ₹3,000 crore towards the revenue deficit of 2014-15.
The Centre has been arguing that only ₹138 crore was pending citing pensions and other schemes implemented by the State government as the reason. But, as per “the gentlemen agreement” between the State and the Centre, the deficit comes to ₹7,000 crore. “The Centre has given ₹4,000 crore so far, and we expect that it will honour the gentlemen agreement,” he said.
Pressing issues
Mr. Ramakrishnudu stressed on the need to treat AP as a special case and extends all possible relief to it. The State achieved double-digit growth solely because it was an agro- based economy. Double-digit growth cannot be the basis for deciding allocation of funds etc. For that matter, the per capita income of A.P. is less than the national average. So the Centre has to respond positively to the needs of A.P., he said, he said.
Railway zone for Visakhapatnam, educational institutions promised in the Act, sharing the burden of EAPs, Centrally-sponsored schemes, were some of the issues on which the Centre has to respond positively, he said.
