the goan I network
PANAJI
Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar painted a better fiscal picture for the state in 2018-19 by estimating a much lower fiscal deficit for the year than earlier years. As per data revealed by Parrikar, Goa will have a fiscal deficit of Rs 763.68 crore in 2018-19 compared to a fiscal deficit of Rs 965.75 crore in FY 2017-18 and of Rs 970.87 crore in FY 2016-17.
Fiscal deficit is the difference between state’s total revenue and total expenditure. A deficit shows that the state will have to borrow that much more to make up for the gap between its revenue and expenditure.
Lower fiscal deficit for 2018-19 also reflects in the debt situation of the state.
Although the total debt has gone up, debt as a percentage of GSDP has come down.
In 2018-19, Goa’s total debt is estimated to be Rs 13,937.4 crore, which is higher than Rs 13,180.6 debt of 2017-18. However, total debt as a percentage of GSDP is estimated to be 18.06% for 2018-19, which is lower than 18.76% in 2017-18.
Meanwhile, state government is likely to repay a significant part of its debt in 2018-19, which will also improve its financial health. As per data released by Parrikar, state will repay Rs 921.7 crore of debt in 2018-19.
Statistics also show that Goa’s debt situation has considerably improved over the years. In 2013-14, state’s debt as a percentage of GSDP stood at a massive 25.15%.
Share in Central Taxes and Grants-in-aid from the Centre have emerged as significant factors in the improvement of Goa’s fiscal health. The budgeted estimate for share in central taxes stands at Rs 2,979.0 crore for 2018-19, which is 17.1% more than Rs 2,544.3 crore revised estimate for 2017-18.
The budgeted grants-in-aid from the central government stands at Rs 754.1 crore in 2018-19, which is more than 2.5 times of Rs 292.6 crore in 2016-17.
Goa’s own tax-revenue is estimated to be Rs 5,278.3 crore in 2018-19, which is 8.9% more than Rs 4,847.6 in 2017-18.
