By Our Reporter
SHILLONG, March 23: The state government is aiming big — as big as USD 10 billion in the next five years.
Chief Minister Conrad K. Sangma on Thursday said the state government will bring policies and programmes to increase the Gross State Domestic Product (GSDP) to Rs 46,600 crore in the next financial year and double the GSDP to around Rs 80,000 crore by 2027-28 and make Meghalaya a USD 10 billion economy.
The state’s economy is growing at an encouraging pace despite the massive disruptions caused by the Covid pandemic. The state’s growth rate for 2018-23 has been at 6.75%, the CM said.
“Importantly, the year-on-year growth rate for the next year is projected at 11.5% and the GSDP will be around Rs 46,600 crore. Extrapolating this trend for the next 5 years, I expect Meghalaya’s economy to grow to about Rs 80,000 crore by 2027-28, making the state a 10-billion dollar economy,” he informed the members of the House.
Earlier, Sangma presented a deficit budget of Rs 1,592 crore, which is around 3.42% of the GSDP for the 2023-2024 fiscal.
Presenting it in the Assembly, Sangma, who also holds the Finance portfolio, said the estimated total receipts during the period will be Rs 21,781 crore, of which revenue receipts are estimated at Rs 19,414 crore and capital receipts at Rs 2,366 crore.
He said the total receipts, excluding borrowings of Rs 2,339 crore, are estimated to be Rs 19,442 crore. “I have estimated the total expenditure at Rs 22,022 crore, of which the revenue expenditure is estimated at Rs 17,186 crore and capital expenditure at Rs 4,836 crore. Excluding repayment of loans of Rs 988 crore, the estimated total expenditure is Rs 21,034 crore,” Sangma said.
He also said the interest payments for 2023-24 are estimated at Rs 1,169 crore and pension payments at Rs 1,794 crore.
The GSDP of Meghalaya is estimated at Rs 41,779 crore for the current financial year, he said.
“The share of central taxes is the most important component of the receipts for the state government. The revised estimates for the share of central taxes for the current financial year is projected at Rs 7,386 crore. This is about 18% higher than the budgetary estimates of Rs 6,264 crore,” the CM said.
He said the total central transfers for the current financial year are expected at Rs 8,706 crore. This includes the Finance Commission devolutions and other transfers from the Centre and excludes the scheme-related transfers.
“These increased transfers are consistent with the country’s growth rates and improved tax collections. I would like to thank the Prime Minister for taking concrete steps towards strengthening the economy. In the financial year 2023-24, I am estimating the share of central taxes at Rs 7,834 crore and a total amount of Rs 8,908 crore as central transfers,” he said.
According to him, the state’s own tax and non-tax revenues are also increasing steadily. He said as per the revised estimates for the current financial year, the state’s own tax revenue will reach Rs 2,636 crore.
“For 2023-24, I am estimating our own tax revenue to increase by about 22% to reach Rs 3,205 crore. This includes Rs 1,785 crore as GST, Rs 792 crore as taxes on sales and trade and Rs 413 crore as Excise duty,” Sangma said.
He said the state’s non-tax revenue for the current financial year is expected to touch Rs 590 crore.
“This is an increase of 12.5% over the previous year’s collections of Rs 525 crore. For 2023-24, I am expecting the state’s own non-tax revenue to further increase by about 26% to reach Rs 742 crore,” the CM said.
He said the total expenditure for 2023-24 is estimated at Rs 22,022 crore, adding this comprises Rs 17,186 crore of revenue expenditure and Rs 4,836 crore of capital expenditure.
“I am pleased to announce that the projected outlay for 2023-2024 is witnessing an increase of 14% over the year 2022-2023 and 38.5% over the year 2021-2022,” Sangma further said.