No fresh taxes likely in bankrupt Punjab
Thursday, 07/03/2013
http://www.punjabnewsline.com/news/No-fresh-taxes-likely-in-bankrupt-Punjab.html
CHANDIGARH: Caught between the devil and the deep sea, the cash-strapped Badal government is unlikely to impose any new taxes for fear of annoying the voters in the run-up to Lok Sabha poll early next year.
The Budget session of the state assembly will begin from March 11 and the finance minister Parminder Singh Dhindsa is scheduled to present the annual Budget for 2013-14 on March 20, but he has given enough indications that effort at mobilizing additional resources will be minimal, if any.
It may be mentioned here that because of the dire financial straits in which the Badal government has landed itself, it has been unable to pay salaries to its employees for the month of February so far. Although Dhindsa has promised that the situation will be resolved in a couple of days, the crisis is unlikely to go away anytime soon.
Presenting his first Budget last year, Dhindsa had unfolded plans to mobilize additional resources to the tune of Rs 3000 crore annually by levying new taxes and ‘rationalizing’ existing levies. But the effortwas abandoned mid-way following a backlash from its ally BJP and the public at large. Still, the state government managed to raise about Rs 1000 crore by raising electricity duty and collectorate, imposingproperty tax and social infrastructure cess and increasing the VAT rate.
The state faces a huge revenue deficit of Rs 6800 crore by the end of the current financial. The debt burden will rise to Rs 87000 crore, representing a jump of Rs 10000 crore over last year. In the comingfinancial year, Punjab’s limit to raise loans from the market will also be reduced.
Punjab has not been able to disburse salaries to its employees this month, nor pay old age pensions for the month of February. The state’s monthly salary bill is about Rs 1100 crore. Also, bills of variousdepartments and old age pension totaling Rs 1500 crore are still pending.
There are reports that the state government has asked GMADA to mortgage its properties to raise about Rs 10000 crore, which may be utilized to clear the pending bills.
