Kerala has reiterated its demand for a ₹24,000-crore special economic package to tide over the “current liquidity stress,” a ₹2,000-crore rehabilitation package for landslides-hit Wayanad, and a special assistance of ₹5,000 crore for the Vizhinjam seaport project in the 2025-26 Union Budget.
Finance Minister K.N. Balagopal presented the State’s requirements at a pre-Budget discussion chaired by Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in Jaisalmer on Friday.
Kerala has, among other things, sought unconditional enhancement of it borrowing ceiling to 3.5% of the Gross State Domestic Product (GSDP) from 3%, continuation of Goods and Services Tax (GST) compensation and a “perspective shift” on off-budget borrowings.
Long-pending demands, including the semi-high speed SilverLine project, have found a place on the State’s wish list. Noting that the Silverline project “assumes even greater importance” given the changing needs of the Kerala society, the State has requested “an all-inclusive stakeholder consultation”. It suggested that “changes/ modifications to the proposed system (may) be made without altering/reducing the envisaged idea and utility of the system”.
Kerala also urged the Centre to earmark ₹4,500 crore for it in the Union Budget for building climate resilience, ₹2,329 crore for protecting the coastline from erosion, and ₹1,876 crore for the Punargeham coastal rehabilitation scheme.
Several of the demands, including the ₹24,000-crore special package and the ₹5,000-crore aid for Vizhinjam port, had featured in the State’s wish list for the 2024-25 Union Budget, but went unheeded. Kerala wanted the ₹24,000-crore special package to be spread out over two years, noting that it was repeating its plea “since it did not receive the attention it deserved”.
In the case of the Vizhinjam port, Kerala also urged the Centre to treat the Viability Gap Fund (VGF) of ₹817.80 crore as special grant, and not as an allocation that should be repaid.
In seeking a “perspective shift” on off-budget borrowings, the State government wanted the borrowings of the Kerala Infrastructure Investment Fund Board (KIIFB) and Kerala Social Security Pension Company Ltd (KSSPL) to be exempted from the State’s borrowing limit.
Further, Kerala urged the Centre to delink the branding/naming requirements of centrally sponsored schemes (CSS) from the conditions for availing the benefits of Scheme for Special Assistance to States for Capital Investment.
Other wish list demands include a ₹1,000-crore allocation for tackling issues related to human-wildlife conflict, ₹800 crore for replacing 15-year-old vehicles owned by government and public sector organisations in line with the Vehicle Scrapping Policy, and a ₹300-crore annual Budget provision for supporting non-resident Keralites.
The State also sought financial support for the second campus proposal of the Regional Cancer Centre, and speedy clearance for long-pending Angamaly-Sabari, Nilambur-Nanjangud, and Thalassery-Mysuru rail projects.
Presenting the State’s demands, Mr. Balagopal expressed hope that the Union Budget would put forward an “expansionary macroeconomic policy to support the country’s progress and empower the States with a view to upholding the true spirit of cooperative federalism”.
Published – December 20, 2024 09:08 pm IST
