Telangana’s capital expenditure turns regressive under Congress regime

While October alone contributed Rs 7,759.59 crore - nearly half of the year's total so far - the earlier months saw slower spending, particularly in August and September

Hyderabad: Telangana’s capital expenditure for 2024-25 turned regressive under the Congress government, when compared to the previous financial year during the BRS regime. The capital expenditure shows a significant surge in October helping narrow the gap with last year’s spending, but overall progress continues to lag.

By October 2024, the State recorded Rs 17,283.69 crore in capital expenditure, substantially lower than Rs 25,790.33 crore for the same period in 2023-24.

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While October alone contributed Rs 7,759.59 crore – nearly half of the year’s total so far – the earlier months saw slower spending, particularly in August and September. For instance, August 2024 expenditure stood at just Rs 556.31 crore this year compared to Rs 5,069.59 crore in 2023-24.

The sluggish start, with April-July 2024 spending at Rs 7,358.52 crore against Rs 13,073.95 crore in 2023, points to cautious fiscal management and potential delays in project approvals due to the elections. This early lull impacted development projects, particularly in critical sectors like irrigation, roads, and urban infrastructure.

However, sharp increase in October suggests a focused government push to revive momentum. The spike reflects efforts to fast-track delayed projects and maintain public confidence in infrastructure development.

The officials of Finance department indicated that the capital expenditure will be increased over the next quarter, to meet the annual target of Rs 32,745.8 crore by the end of current fiscal.

“The lag in capital expenditure is largely due to the Lok Sabha elections and lack of clarity over the Central funds for the current fiscal till a full-fledged union budget was presented in June this year. We are hoping to catch up with our annual target over next four months,” a top official in the department said.

However, they are skeptic about the State revenue as well as the market borrowings which are lagging far behind the annual target. While the revenue receipts were pegged at around Rs 1.02 lakh crore at the end of November against annual target of Rs 2.21 lakh crore, the market borrowings have already surpassed Rs 41,000 crore as on December 20 against budget estimate of Rs 49,255 crore for the current fiscal.

Analysts suggest that addressing delays in fund disbursement and prioritising high-impact sectors like transportation, irrigation, and urban development, can help bridge the gap and ensure the State’s developmental trajectory remains on track.

They emphasised the need to strike a balance between fiscal discipline and development needs failing which could delay essential projects and missing opportunities for job creation and economic growth.