To safeguard the interest of state’s farmers, Punjab Finance Minister Manpreet Badal on Wednesday urged the Union Government to continue the procurement of wheat and paddy at Minimum Support Price (MSP) from the State of Punjab, besides ensuring procurement of maize and alternate crops to promote crop diversification and to address the problem of depleting groundwater table.
Manpreet, during the pre-budget meeting of Finance Ministers of all States and Union Territories with the Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman at New Delhi, also raised the issue of Crop Residue Management, suggesting that the Central Government should make provision in the Provisional Cost Sheet for Crop Residue Management at the rate of `100 per quintal over and above the MSP.
He pointed out that the Centre has been providing financial assistance to the States for creating infrastructure in roads, power, or irrigation, etc.
However, the States like Punjab has already created such infrastructure, without the Union Government’s aid, by incurring expenditure from its own resources or through debt, are being penalised in the present set of schemes.
“The State has not only been losing to non-receipt of grants for creation of infrastructure from the Centre since infrastructure already exists but is incurring debt repayments for creating the infrastructure from its own resources,” said the
Minister, adding to incentivise States like Punjab through special assistance for rejuvenating the existing infrastructure.
With the growing concerns on depleting groundwater levels and a dire need for the management of wastewater, Union Finance Minister was requested to formulate a special scheme for the establishment of water treatment plants and rejuvenation of villages’ ponds in the forthcoming Union Budget.
Manpreet said that Punjab is a major food-grains contributor to the nation pool, contributing approximately 120-125 lakhs metric tonnes (LMT) of wheat and 105-110 LMT of rice every yHowever, the slow pace of liquidation of foodgrains from the State during the last two-three years has resulted in a shortage of storage space for new arrivals of crops. He sought the Central Government’s intervention for ensuring early evacuation and liquidation of food stocks from the state’s godowns.
On macro-economic policy decisions, for the revival of economic growth and to promote public investments, Manpreet urged the Centre to relax the FRBM limits to enable the States in mobilizing additional revenue to be spent exclusively on infrastructure and other productive projects like roads, bridges, check dams, etc, and generate employment and demand.
The spending or public investment would be instrumental in turning the business cycle and reviving the consumption and demand in the economy, leading to an increase in tax revenues.
With current levels of inflation, this additional fiscal space would certainly boost growth, create jobs leading to demand creation and increase consumption, he said, while these propositions were supported by almost all the participating States.
PUNJAB FM EXPRESSES CONCERN ON UNENDING DELAY IN RELEASE OF GST COMPENSATION
Punjab Finance Minister Manpreet Badal on Wednesday said that the State’s cash flows have been seriously impacted by the Central Government’s unilateral decision to adopt new pattern in transferring the devolutions of the State share in taxes as per the recommendations of the Finance Commission as also the transfer of state share in Central GST and Integrated GST.
“The State, with hardship, has been able to cope up with this unilateral decision but has again been hit hard by the unending delay in release of its compensation of assured revenues of GST,” he said.
Manpreet said that in the first two years of implementation, bi-monthly release of GST Compensation by Central Government to the States had been adversely affecting their ability to meet their committed and regular outflows.
He also requested for the monthly release of such compensation to enable the State to timely and efficiently plan their expenditures.
“Furthermore, the non-release of the bi-monthly GST compensation to the State, even after the expiry of four months is sternly affecting the State’s fiscal management cycle,” said Manpreet.