Odisha’s per capita debt burden is at Rs 26,978: CM

The per capita debt burden in Odisha stood at Rs 26,978 till the end of October of the current financial year, Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi informed the state assembly on Monday.

In a written reply to a question by BJP legislator Tankadhar Tripathy, the chief minister said the total outstanding public debt of the state government as on October 31 is Rs 1,26,799 crore.

The per capita loan burden in Odisha has remained much lower in comparison to other states, he claimed.

The Budgetary annual interest provision for the FY 2025-26 is Rs 6500 crores.

As per data shared by the chief minister in the House, the public debt was Rs 92,775.18 crore by the end of 2019-20, and it surged to Rs 1,20,710.18 crore by FY 2024-25.

The government has succeeded in bringing down the total loan burden by Rs 9040.16 crore during the financial year 2022-23. However, the total debt burden again rose by Rs 8145.59 crore in 2023-24 and Rs 24,399.78 crore in the last fiscal, as per the data.

During the current financial year (till October), the state government has borrowed Rs 14,725.79 crore from different sources, including Rs 7,000 crore from the open market and Rs 2301.43 crore from the central Government.

As per the recommendation of the 15th Finance Commission and the Fiscal Responsibility and Budget Management (FRBM) Act, 2005, Odisha’s debt stock should remain within 25 per cent of its Gross State Domestic Product (GSDP), Majhi said.

Similarly, the interest payment to revenue receipt (IP/RR) ratio should remain within 15 per cent.

For 2024-25, the debt-to-GSDP ratio stood at 12.72 per cent and the IP/RR ratio remained at 2.87 per cent—both well below the prescribed limits, the CM said.

During the Question Hour, several opposition BJD and Congress members have criticised the Odisha government over “poor budget expenditure” during the current financial year.

The total expenditure till October end has remained Rs 1,14,518 crore, which is 39 per cent of the total budget estimate. With only four months left of the financial year, how the government will utilise the remaining 61 per cent of the budget, questioned opposition members Pratap Keshari Deb and Rama Chandra Kadam.

Replying on behalf of the CM, senior minister Prithviraj Harichandan said the expenditure in creating infrastructure has slowed down due to the extended monsoon this year.

Despite the slowdown, the total budget expenditure during this year (till October) has remained more compared to the same period of last year. The expenditure has been enhanced by Rs 10,882 crore by October end this year in comparison to last year.

The state has utilised Rs 1,14,518 crore during this year, while the spending figure was Rs 1,03,636 crore during the same period of last year, which was 36 per cent of the budget estimation, he said.