US tariff war poses threat to Kerala's key exports, says Finance Minister K N Balagopal
He was inaugurating a seminar on Post-Covid Development Challenges and Response: Through the Lens of Kerala Budgets, organised by the Gulati Institute of Finance and Taxation (GIFT).
Balagopal said developed countries such as the US and Australia have been mounting pressure on the Union government to open up the Indian market for agricultural and dairy imports. Reports indicate that Australia can sell milk in India at Rs 30 per litre. If cheaper milk is allowed into the Kerala market, local dairy farmers will be in serious trouble, he said.
The minister also criticised the campaign that Kerala is in a debt trap, with claims that the state's total debt has risen to Rs 6 trillion. 'This is absolutely baseless. A section of so-called experts is spreading false information about Kerala's debt position through social media,' he said. The state's total debt by the end of FY 2025-26 would be around Rs 4.7 lakh crore. Based on a trend seen over the past three decades, Kerala's debt has doubled every five years. Had that pattern continued, it would have already crossed Rs 6 trillion, he said.
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