PORVORIM: Even as Chief Minister Dr Pramod Sawant said that the State’s financial condition is under control, figures tabled in the State Assembly point otherwise.
As per the written reply given in the Assembly, the State’s public debt has risen to Rs 20,411.61 cr.
Replying to a question tabled by Opposition Leader Digambar Kamat, Sawant, who holds the finance portfolio, said that public debt is Rs 15,219.56 crore, while other liabilities are of Rs 5,192.05 crore. “The total debt is Rs 20,411.61 crore,” he said in the written reply.
The reply also states that the amount of borrowing, forming part of public debt availed by the government from 01-02-2019 to 31-122019, is Rs 2,560.44 crore. “The debts are well within borrowing limit as the limit set by the Ministry of Finance borrowing limit Rs 2,691.00 crore,” he said.
The reply also says that the government has never defaulted in repayment of debt. “The State is maintaining Consolidated Sinking Fund and Guarantee Redemption Fund with RBI as buffer for repayment,” he said.
Giving details, the reply stated that total outstanding debt held by State government corporations and autonomous bodies, viz GSIDC, SAG, KTCL, GTDC, EDC, Imagine Panaji Smart City Development Ltd, Sewerage Corporation, Goa Waste Management Corporation, Sanjivani Sakhar Karkhana and Goa-IDC) as on 31/03/2019 is Rs 359.66 crore.
