Mounting debts keep Telangana Assembly on the boil

Deputy Chief Minister Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka and former Finance Minister T Harish Rao sparred over the fiscal management of the Congress government's first year in power

Hyderabad: The Telangana Legislative Assembly witnessed heated exchanges between the treasury and the opposition benches over the mounting debts of the State.

Deputy Chief Minister Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka and former Finance Minister T Harish Rao sparred over the fiscal management of the Congress government’s first year in power.

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While Bhatti Vikramarka claimed that the State government raised loans of around Rs.51,277 crore, Harish Rao countered that the State debts as on Tuesday had escalated to a whopping Rs.1.27 lakh crore, including both guaranteed and non-guaranteed loans.

The row began during Question Hour when Bhatti Vikramarka informed the House that in the first year after coming to power till November 30 this year, the Congress government obtained Rs.52,118 crore under Fiscal Responsibility and Budget Management (FRBM), Rs 61,991.14 crore under non-FRBM loans obtained by various corporations, public sector undertakings and special purpose vehicles with government guarantees and another Rs.10,099.7 crore loans without guarantees.

Harish Rao countered with a detailed breakdown, charging the Congress with incurring Rs.1.27 lakh crore in loans, including Rs 61,991 crore under corporate guarantees and Rs.10,099 crore without guarantees as well as a Rs.3,000 crore fresh loan obtained as on Tuesday.

“If this trend continues, Telangana’s debt will surge to Rs.6.36 lakh crore in Congress government’s five-year term,” he warned.

He also dismissed Congress’s claim that Rs 6.71 lakh crore was borrowed during the BRS regime, asserting the total was Rs 4.17 lakh crore.

“The Congress presented a white paper to mislead the public. Despite obtaining record loans and enjoying robust revenue, pending bills remain unpaid, and no new schemes have been launched,” he said, condemning the attempts to inflate the debts obtained under the previous BRS regime to blame it for the Congress government’s shortcomings.

He demanded for a short discussion on the fiscal condition of Telangana and its debts. However, the Deputy Chief Minister fired back, denying to have availed Rs.1.27 lakh crore and blamed the BRS over fiscal mismanagement. He claimed that Harish Rao was misleading the House and making an issue out of nothing. He suggested that the BRS legislators not waste time and allow the House to proceed with the Question Hour to proceed. Countering him, Harish Rao urged the Speaker to allow the Privilege Motion moved by the opposition for discussion on the State debts.

A heated argument ensued between Bhatti Vikramarka and the BRS legislators including Harish Rao and Vemula Prashanth Reddy, with the latter pointing out that despite the mammoth loan and increased State revenue, numerous bill payments were pending and no new scheme was launched by the Congress government.

In response, Bhatti Vikramarka continued to blame the previous BRS government for the financial crisis in the State, evading direct answers and failing to acknowledge that the governance was a continuous process. “We inherited Rs.40,000 crore in unpaid bills, of which around Rs.14,000 crore have been cleared till date,” he said, adding that the government spent Rs.66,000 crore towards payment of principal and interests for loans obtained.

But Harish Rao hit back, stating that the BRS government spent Rs.65,000 crore on free power supply. He stated that the Congress government was misleading public on interest payments which was only Rs 2,900 crore per month as per the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) report. “Congress’s borrowing has not resulted in a single new project or a new scheme,” he added.

BJP MLA Maheshwar Reddy also questioned the State’s fiscal prudence, noting that loans had exceeded the FRBM limit of Rs.57,000 crore for the current fiscal.

He questioned the State government over plans to mortgage 400 acres of premium land to raise funds. “No electoral promises have been fulfilled in the last year despite the massive loans,” he said.