Hyderabad: BRS MLC Sravan Dasoju raised concern over Telangana’s fiscal slide, saying the state faced rising stress due to slow revenue growth, increased borrowings, and widening fiscal gaps. He said these trends resulted from policy delays, administrative inexperience, and a lack of financial discipline. He referred to Finance Accounts up to September 2025 and recent CAG assessments to support his claims.
He said the state reached 33.49% of its annual revenue target in the first six months of 2025–26, compared with 34.10% during the same period last year. Tax revenue touched 40.97% of the Rs. 1.75 lakh-crore estimate. State GST collections reached 42.56%, slightly above last year’s 42.21%. Sales tax recorded 44.65%, while state excise achieved 34.83%. Stamps and registration stood at 38.85%. He said the ‘other taxes’ category declined steeply to 28.63% from 37.72%.
Non-tax revenue reached only 9.83% of the Rs. 31,618.77-crore projection. Central grants stood at 8.76%, compared with 11.31% during the previous year. He said the consistent slowdown showed gaps in planning, weak inter-departmental coordination, and absence of a clear fiscal strategy.
Borrowing levels rise sharply, notes Sravan Dasoju
The state borrowed Rs. 45,139 crore by September 2025, amounting to 83.58% of its annual borrowing ceiling. The fiscal deficit reached Rs. 45,139 crore, or 84% of the budgeted Rs. 54,010 crore. He said the comparable figure stood at 66% during the same months last year. The revenue deficit widened to Rs. 12,452 crore from Rs. 5,296 crore. The primary deficit climbed to Rs. 30,768 crore, compared with Rs. 21,326 crore the previous year. He said public debt stood at Rs. 3.48 lakh crore by August 2025, excluding off-budget borrowings.
He said the government used borrowings for routine expenditure instead of productive activities. This, he said, increased the long-term burden and limited the state’s capacity to support development.
Spending trends also reflected imbalance. Revenue expenditure reached 39.83% of the annual target. Interest payments touched 74.19%. Salaries and pensions reached 57.72%, compared with 55.45% last year. He said serving employees benefited while pensioners continued to face delays in payments.
Subsidies reached 49.70%, and capital expenditure stood at 60.90%. He said no major infrastructure projects were launched although the allocation for capital works remained substantial.
Sravan criticised the government for prioritising slogans such as “Musi Revival”, “Future City”, and “Telangana Rising”. He said these initiatives lacked depth and did not address gaps in education, healthcare, civic services, industry, and law and order.
He said Telangana, once known for strong fiscal discipline, now faced administrative and structural weaknesses. He called for responsible leadership, improved wealth creation, and balanced welfare to restore the state’s financial position and public trust.
