Hyderabad: MIM leader Akbaruddin Owaisi on Tuesday said that the Finance Commission had favoured Andhra Pradesh at the expense of Telangana State in allocating of financial resources.
Mr Owaisi said AP’s share in grants and taxes from the Centre was hiked while that of TS was reduced. Andhra Pradesh is among the eleven states that the 14th Finance Commission recommended for additional grants-in-aid because they are revenue deficit states.
Mr Owaisi cited the 14th FC, which recommended that AP be allocated an additional grants-in-aid of Rs 22,113 crore since it was a revenue deficit state. He also said AP’s share in devolution of taxes would be 4.30 per cent while that of TS has been cut to 2.48 per cent from 2.91 per cent.
“AP is being favoured by the Centre and the FC at the expense of TS. There are cuts in the tax share of TS while AP’s has been increased. There was no mention of this in the Governor’s speech,” Mr Owaisi said.
He estimated AP would receive nearly Rs 1.5 lakh crore from the Centre over the next five years. He also said that the basic and performance-based grants to AP would be more than that for TS.
Later Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao compared AP to an ill patient saying the state needed some “tonic” which is why AP was counted among eleven others in the country for additional grants.
