The States’ market borrowings have jumped 55 per cent to Rs 3.75 lakh crore so far this fiscal, or 75 per cent of the budgeted amount, with 17 of them raising an additional Rs 22,350 crore from the latest auction of state development loans held on Tuesday.
Rising expenses and falling revenue, including the Centre’s inability to pay the GST dues, have been leading states into a debt trap after the pandemic scuppered their finances since the beginning of the fiscal.
The latest debt raising is Rs 1,200 crore more than the notified amount as Maharashtra and Jharkhand accepted an additional Rs 1,000 crore and Rs 200 crore, respectively.
So far this fiscal year (between April 7 and October 6), 28 states and two Union Territories have cumulatively raised Rs 3.75 lakh crore via market borrowings, which is 55 per cent more than the borrowings in the same period of FY20 when it stood at Rs 2.43 lakh crore, according to a data analysis by Care Ratings.