Central Government Financial Position Statement:
The Central Government’s full financial status report for the year 2024-2025 will be submitted in July. In this situation, the Union Finance Ministry held a consultation meeting with all the State Finance Ministers at Delhi’s Bharat Mandapam yesterday.
Consultative meeting:
The meeting was chaired by Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, and Finance Minister Thangam Thennarasu and Finance Secretary Udayachandran from Tamil Nadu participated.
Demands emphasized by Minister Thangam South:
Minister Thangam Tennarasu emphasized the projects related to Tamil Nadu in this consultation meeting. He then said, “The Cabinet Committee on Central Economic Affairs has approved the second phase of the Chennai Metro Rail project and allocated adequate funds for the project in the Union Budget 2024-25.
Last year, the central government released only Rs 276 crore as disaster relief funds for the 2 major natural calamities of Tamil Nadu. Therefore, the central government should allocate a fund of Rs 3000 crores to rehabilitate the affected areas.
Also, the central government is changing the tax collection that can be shared with the states in its revenue collection into charges such as top tax and additional tax. This top tax surcharge on the total tax revenue has risen to 20.28 per cent in the quarter of 2022-23.The rates of taxation should be changed so that the states get their fair share of tax distribution.
The Government of Tamil Nadu provides 8 times the amount of subsidy provided by the Central Government to the Prime Minister’s Urban Housing Scheme. This should reduce the financial burden.
Pension:
The state government provides six times more than the funds given by the central government for the national social financial assistance scheme like old age pension, disabled widows etc. Thus, the central government should increase its contribution to these aid schemes by 50 percent.
The central government has fixed the net borrowing ceiling of the states at three per cent of the gross state domestic product, according to which Tamil Nadu has been borrowing less than Rs 8,500 crore in the last four years. States will be weakened in fiscal management in terms of borrowing restrictions. The central government has forced the state power distribution companies to accept losses as one of the conditions for getting additional credit of 0.5 percent of the gross domestic product by making appropriate changes and exempting them from such a condition.
Railway Projects:
Also Tamil Nadu has been given a limited number of railway projects. The railway infrastructure facilities in the suburbs of Chennai need to be improved to meet the needs of the growing population. I request to announce five new railway lines in industrial areas to promote industrial development of the state. A financial allocation should also be provided for it. Also a high speed rail line is needed to connect Chennai, Salem and Coimbatore.
Chennai – Kanyakumari four-lane extension:
The Chennai-Kanyakumari four-lane highway constructed by the National Highways Authority of India is currently experiencing an increase in traffic and many road accidents and fatalities. Therefore, the central government should announce the new project to expand this route in the upcoming financial statement and allocate sufficient funds,” he said.
