
Andhra Pradesh's revenue deficit breaches 110% of budget estimate in first four months of FY26
Tired of too many ads?
Remove Ads
Andhra Pradesh's revenue deficit crossed 110% of the budget estimate , by reaching Rs 36,741 crore in the first four months of the current fiscal, against the projected deficit of Rs 33,186 crore for the entire year, indicating that the state will have to rely heavily on borrowings or Central government assistance.According to the latest statistics released by the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG), the fiscal deficit for April-July period stood at Rs 48,354.02 which is about 61% of the projected Rs 79,926.90 crore for the financial year.However, the Goods and Services Tax collections grew significantly, achieving 61% of the budget estimate of Rs 27,477.15 crore in the four months.Of the total revenue receipts of Rs 2,97,929.16 crore for the full year, the state achieved Rs 33% at Rs 98,281.42 crore, including Rs 49,198.29 crore of borrowings and other liabilities in the last four months.India Ratings & Research, in a latest report, said for FY26, the state government has estimated a revenue deficit of 1.8 per cent and a fiscal deficit of 4.4% of the GSDP. The debt/GSDP is projected to be at 35.5% for FY26.The state has spent over Rs 50,000 crore towards the Social Sector, including pensions, during the past four months.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


The Hindu
21 minutes ago
- The Hindu
Required reforms: on reforms to the GST system
The central government's proposals to reform the Goods and Services Tax (GST) system are bold and timely. They stand to benefit the middle class and the business community, as the government claims. Shifting 99% of the items in the 12% slab to a 5% tax rate, and 90% of the items in the 28% slab to 18% will substantially reduce the tax burden on most consumers. Rationalising the number of slabs and shifting similar products to the same slab will also reduce ambiguity and litigation, which are the major issues businesses have with the current GST setup. Further, while most of the focus has been captured by the rate restructuring proposals, the procedural reforms regarding registration, return filing and refunds are equally important. Simplifying GST is not just about reducing the multiplicity of rates but also about making it easier and less time-consuming for tax-payers to navigate the system. Easing registration, simplifying returns and speeding up refunds, therefore, are welcome improvements the Centre is pursuing. Combined with the new Income Tax Bill and the rejig of income-tax slabs in this year's Budget, these GST reforms will highlight 2025 as a watershed year for tax reform — direct as well as indirect tax. While the government has not made an official estimate of what the revenue impact of these reductions will be, sources have said that it expects a hit. Two years ago, the Reserve Bank of India had estimated that the average GST rate was 11.6%, which is now expected to fall substantially. However, the government is confident that an increase in consumption and a widening of the tax base will offset most of the revenue loss. With a large number of items set to be taxed at just 5%, the incentives for input tax credit scams and tax evasion will also be substantially removed. A willingness to risk some amount of revenue in order to boost domestic consumption bodes well for the economy, especially at a time when export demand is faltering due to tariff uncertainties. It remains to be seen how the State governments will react to this proposed revenue surrender. They have already been lobbying the Sixteenth Finance Commission to increase the share of States in central taxes. These tax cuts will also make it even more unlikely that petroleum products — a major source of States' revenues — will be included in the GST any time soon. Politically, it will be difficult for the States to directly oppose these rate reductions, but they might instead pressure the Centre for compensation once again. Crucially, the Centre will be reaching out to the States over the next few weeks to put forth its case. It is important that their concerns are taken on board as well.


Time of India
an hour ago
- Time of India
Once a major tourist draw, Bird Park sees dip in visitors & revenue
Chandigarh: Conceptualised and built with the aim of boosting tourism in Chandigarh, the Bird Park located in the city's lush green northern fringe is seeing a gradual dip in tourist flow. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now It was brought to life not so long ago in Nov 2021 by the Chandigarh administration. The UT administration had left no stone unturned to woo visitors, equipping the park with the necessary facilities and other attractions. No wonder, it turned out to be a popular tourist draw then. A senior UT official said, "Earlier, a large number of visitors from Chandigarh Tricity used to visit the park. But later their number dwindled, and tourists from outside the Tricity started thronging the park. Though the park still gets visitors, and the craze is still there, it's not like what it was when it first opened." Records available with the Chandigarh administration show that from its inception till March 2023, a total of 5,16,860 visitors visited the Bird Park. However, there was a dip in tourist flow after that. In 2023-2024 financial year, the park saw 4,08,846 visitors. The number went down further in 2024-2025FY, with a total of 329,332 visitors. Naturally, revenue also saw a dip with every passing year. But it wasn't as much compared to the decline in the number of visitors. UT records show that from Nov 2021 till March 2023, the park authority earned a revenue of Rs 2.73 crore, while it came down to 2.63 crore in 2023-2024FY. The revenue went down further in 2024-2025FY, with the Chandigarh administration collecting Rs 2.60 crore during the period. So, from Nov 2021 till the end of the last financial year (March 2025), the authority earned over Rs 7.98 crore from the Bird Park. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now Over 12.55 lakh visitors visited the park during the period. Students, who visit the Bird Park from time to time as part of their school trips, are also among them. The enclosures inside the Bird Park have been designed in such a way that the birds, apart from taking flight and nesting in the natural habitat, can stay at the aviary while visitors can walk past them. The structures enclose thousands of plants of varying canopies, which provide an ideal habitat, food, and shelter for the birds that can fly freely and breed.


Time of India
an hour ago
- Time of India
14 law colleges in Gujarat back in admission process
Ahmedabad: The Bar Council of India (BCI) has conditionally allowed 14 granted law colleges in Gujarat to participate in the admission process after they deposited inspection fees, application fees and penalty charges with the council. With this approval, all 14 colleges will now be included in the centralised LLB admission process conducted through the Gujarat Common Admission System (GCAS). As a result, the state govt has decided to conduct one more admission round, with fresh online registrations beginning on Aug 20. Earlier, these colleges were excluded from the admission process due to non-payment of inspection and penalty fees, as well as a shortage of required number of faculty members. Last year, the issue even reached the high court, where the state initially refused to release the fees. Consequently, only seven to eight colleges could participate in the admission process. This year too, the case continued in the court until the govt assured payment of over Rs 11 crore towards inspection, penalty and related charges on behalf of the colleges. Following this assurance, the BCI granted conditional permission to 14 of the 28 granted law colleges in the state. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like American Investor Warren Buffett Recommends: 5 Books For Turning Your Life Around Blinkist: Warren Buffett's Reading List Undo The conditional approval requires each college to appoint at least one principal and four faculty members, provide them salaries as per UGC rules and ensure proper infrastructure and library facilities. An affidavit confirming compliance with these requirements must be submitted to the council. Meanwhile, three of the approved colleges have filed fresh petitions in the high court, challenging the aspects of the decision. You Can Also Check: Ahmedabad AQI | Weather in Ahmedabad | Bank Holidays in Ahmedabad | Public Holidays in Ahmedabad | Gold Rates Today in Ahmedabad | Silver Rates Today in Ahmedabad With the inclusion of these colleges, students will get another opportunity for admissions as the GCAS process opens for new registrations on Aug 20, followed by an additional admission round. Stay updated with the latest local news from your city on Times of India (TOI). Check upcoming bank holidays , public holidays , and current gold rates and silver prices in your area.