AP to wipe out revenue deficit by year-end: FM

Hyderabad, Mar 1 (UNI) Expressing confidence that Andhra Pradesh will be able to totally wipe out revenue deficit by the year-end, Finance Minister K Rosaiah today maintained that the state's debt of Rs 86,464 crore was no cause for worry.

When opposition AIMIM floor leader Akbaruddin Owaisi, seeking clarification after the Minister's reply to the debate, expressed concern over the state's debt, which was projected to go up to Rs 1,00,000 crore from Rs 77,952 crore by 2008-09, the Finance Minister said the state was securing loans only for productive purposes.

The state would get Rs 6000 crore from the Centre for keeping revenue and fiscal deficit under check, he added.

With effective fiscal management, the Congress government had brought down the revenue deficit, which was Rs 2961 crore in 2003-04, to just Rs 53.54 crore in 2006-07 against the budgeted revenue deficit of Rs 995.84 crore.

Maintaining that state's debt was well within the manageable limits of three per cent of the State Gross Domestic Product, he said even developed countries secured loans.

The Finance Minister also took a dig at the TDP for its 'impractical'' vision 2020, which required several crores of rupees.

Denying the opposition's charge that the government had neglected welfare sector in budgetary allocation, he said 31 lakh old people would be given pensions this year and the number would go up by another eight to nine lakhs next year.

The government had made a three-fold increase in the allocation for welfare schemes, he added.

The government had earmarked Rs 913 crore for providing scholarships to SCs, STs, BCs and minorities as against Rs 256 crore allocated in 2003-04.

Regarding steps taken by the government to curb price rise, he said onion was being imported from neighbouring Maharashtra and sold through 'Rytu Bazaars' (Farmers Market) at Rs seven per kg and Tamarind was being sold at Rs 30 per kg by the Girijan corporation.

Other essential commodities were being made available at the Farmers Market at reasonable prices, he said, adding that the prices of essential commodities would come down significantly as soon as the rabi crops were harvested.

UNI