Telangana Budget: Will not impose fresh taxes, says Bhatti

State government would not impose fresh taxes to generate revenue for taking up development works and implementing the six guarantees promised by the Congress party.

Hyderabad: Deputy Chief Minister and Minister of Finance Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka said the State government would not impose fresh taxes to generate revenue for taking up development works and implementing the six guarantees promised by the Congress party.

Replying to the discussion on budget on Saturday, Bhatti said the government had factored in the State’s revenues, expenditure, and priorities like the implementation of the six guarantees, in presenting a rational budget in the Assembly. Allocations have accordingly been made for the guarantees as well as other assurances given by the Congress to people, he said, adding that the State government had identified alternative revenue sources to increase revenue.

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“In the last three months the government recovered Rs.500 crore from millers under the Revenue Recovery Act. Apart from this the government managed to get Rs.3561 crore from the Food Corporation of India(FCI),” he informed.

There were 25 lakh Layout Regularisation Scheme (LRS) applications pending in the State and the government would soon clear them, which would help the State in getting additional revenue, he said, adding that the government had allocated Rs.10,000 crore for the development of Hyderabad city, which would help the State in increasing its revenue. Similarly, the government would find means to tax private liquor store Tonique as it was not paying tax to the State, he said.

Alleging that the previous BRS government left the State bankrupt, Vikramarka said the burden of unplanned loans was now posing a challenge. He refuted the allegation that the State government had allocated Rs.3,003 crore for minority welfare by reducing the allocation of SCs and STs.

“We have not decreased the allocations of SCs and STs. People are unnecessarily spreading lies,”he said.

He asserted that the government had presented a realistic budget in the Assembly with control on wasteful expenditure and focus on effectively implementing welfare programmes.