The crisis triggered by the spread of COVID-19 is threatening to derail the State government’s plans to shore up its revenue and tide over the resource from the next financial year.
Tourism and allied sectors have already started feeling the heat and a further dip in trade, commerce and industry sectors would prove to be quite deleterious for the State that is already battling a grave fiscal crisis.
Finance Minister T.M.Thomas Isaac told The Hindu that the new financial year is fraught with uncertainty. The current financial year posted only a marginal increase in tax revenue returns. The crisis may deepen in 20-21 unless the virus spread is contained immediately.
The dwindling job opportunities in the Gulf countries and job loss are likely to reflect on the remittances. A situation that would force the shutdown of small and medium industries forcing a return of migrant labour to their home States would deepen the intensity of the crisis.
The Cabinet decision for a partial closedown was made to pre-empt such a crisis. The government is making an all-out bid to source funds for sustaining the tempo of the infrastructure development projects taken up at the behest of the Kerala Infrastructure Investment Fund Board, Dr. Isaac says.
Earlier, the government had laid out a plan for mopping up resources mainly by plugging revenue leak and stepping up tax collection.
The alleged indifference of the Centre in addressing the financial concerns of the State and also expediting steps for boosting rural spending by allocating more funds for the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme and such others are feared to compound the financial woes further.
“The Centre does not seem to be keen on making policy corrections and putting the economy back on rails,” says Dr.Isaac.
