The state’s capital expenditure has more than quintupled in the last eight years from Rs 115.83 billion in 2014-15 to Rs 613.43 billion in 2021-22.
Posted on – 12:06 AM, Thu – 22 December 22
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Hyderabad: After experiencing unprecedented challenges during and after the Covid-19 pandemic, Telangana has now topped all the states in the country in terms of annual growth in capital expenditure. Telangana’s capex has more than quintupled in the last eight years from Rs 11,583 crore in 2014-15 to Rs 61,343 crore in 2021-22.
Overall, capital expenditure budgets for 2021-22 have increased by 28 per cent across all states and union territories compared to the previous financial year, led by Telangana leading the way with an 87 per cent increase. The state government’s capital expenditure in 2020-21 is about Rs 32,645 crore which will increase significantly to Rs 61,343 crore in 2021-22. Even in terms of highest capex in the country, Telangana ranks fifth among the major states.
Capital expenditure is the government’s budget for development activities, including equipment, buildings, sanitation, education, and other infrastructure development works. Over the past eight years, Telangana has been devoting a lot of its budget to creating fixed assets such as investments and infrastructure development, including irrigation projects that pay long-term dividends.
State Owned Tax Revenue (SOTR) has also surged from Rs 29,288 crore after its inception in 2014-15 to Rs 9,291.0 crore in 2021-22, also a record increase. Thus, Telangana earned Rs 2,545.4 crore from SOTR and spent Rs 1,680 crore per day on capex alone.
Among other states, West Bengal recorded a 78 per cent increase in capital expenditure from Rs 36,498 crore in 2020-21 to Rs 6,5291 crore in 2021-22, the second-highest increase. Surprisingly, six states, especially those ruled by the BJP, cut capex compared to the previous year. Among the major states, Maharashtra’s budget increased by just 3%, while Bihar slashed capital spending by 10%. Uttar Pradesh, the state with the largest area and population, has the highest capex at Rs 14.4 trillion in 2021-22, but only a 20% increase from Rs 94,788 crore in 2020-21.
