The State Government has decided to raise ₹2,000 crore open market borrowings through the auction of securities to be conducted by the Reserve Bank of India on Tuesday.
This takes the total market borrowings during July to ₹5,000 crore as the State has already raised ₹3,000 crore during the two auctions conducted by the RBI on July 4 (₹2,000 crore) and July 11 (₹1,000 crore). The quantum of market borrowings is against the amounts proposed in the indicative calender of borrowings submitted to the Apex Bank for the July – September quarter.
The Government indicated that it would raise ₹3,000 crore during July in two instalments. But Tuesday’s ₹2,000 crore borrowings will take quantum of OMBs much higher with one more auction left in the month.
The development comes in the backdrop of the Union Finance Ministry fixing the ceiling of market borrowings by Telangana for the current year at ₹36,617 crore in addition to ₹4,107 crore loan from the public account and another ₹1,500 crore as negotiated loans taking the total borrowings to ₹42,225 crore.
The Union Finance Ministry clarified that no restrictions have been imposed on Telangana’s borrowings and the borrowing ceiling for the State for the fiscal 2023-24 has been arrived at ₹57,813.99 crore as per the recommendation of the XV Finance Commission and other guidelines. However, as the State Government had over borrowed in the preceding financial years, the borrowing ceiling had been fixed at Rs. 42,225 crore after adjusting the over borrowings.
The Government change in the quantum of borrowings during the second quarter comes in the light of the fact that the State had pressing commitments to fulfil with just a few months left for the assembly elections. The State had to release amounts under Dalit Bandhu for which budgetary allocation of ₹17,700 crore had been made and it had already given administrative sanction of Rs. 500 crore under the scheme for providing financial assistance to BC artisans at ₹1 lakh each.
This apart, the Government had recently announced commencement of Gruha Lakshmi scheme under which ₹3 lakh each would be provided to poor families owning small piece of land to construct their own houses on them. The scheme first found mention in the TRS manifesto of 2018 when the ruling party said: “Poor persons who have their own land and desirous of constructing a house on their own will be provided financial assistance ranging from ₹5 lakh to ₹6 lakh”.
The manifesto made mention about implementation of loan waiver to farmers upto Rs. 1 lakh and the scheme was implemented for those who obtained loans upto Rs. 35,000. The process had been put on hold after that.
Given the pressing commitments it has in the run up to the elections, the Government appears to have speeded up raising financial resources in the form of market borrowings as well as auction of plots in different places.
(eom)