Hyderabad: Anticipating the state’s revenues to increase significantly in 2017-18 due to GST expectedly coming into force from July 1, the TS government has decided to present a “bigger” Budget than last year. The 2017-18 Budget will be presented to the State Legislature on Monday.
The Budget size is likely to be over Rs 1.41 lakh crore against Rs 1.30 lakh crore last year. The TS Cabinet, which met at the CM’s new camp office “Pragathi Bhavan” for first time on Sunday, approved the Budget.
Earlier, the Cabinet meetings took place in the Secretariat. Sources said the Cabinet approved the '1.41 lakh-crore Budget after finance minister Etala Rajender explained the state expected revenue collection to increase by nearly '20,000 crore since GST will improve tax compliance in the state, bringing more commercial establishments under the tax net and giving no scope for evasion.
Sources said more than the Budget, the Cabinet discussed the political impact of BJP’s stunning performance in recent Assembly elections, especially in UP.
Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao is said to have told the Cabinet that though BJP is quite weak in TS, it should not be taken lightly in wake of its superb performance in back to back elections.
He told the ministers to pull up their socks and brace up for 2019 elections by taking up extensive programmes in their constituencies after the Budget session ends.
Mr Rao felt that Karnataka Assembly elections due in early 2018 would be a key indicator of how the BJP fares in the South in 2019, especially in TS and AP.
“If the BJP wrests power from the Congress in Karnataka in 2018, it would aggressively take up activities to consolidate its base in TS and AP in the election year. We need to carefully watch BJP’s moves for 2019 and it should not be taken lightly,” Mr Rao said.
The TRS survey on performance of ministers and MLAs also came up for discussion. Mr Rao said he would continue to order such surveys every six months in all the 119 Assembly constituencies and asked non-performers to overcome their shortcomings identified in the survey.
