The Congress Government in Telangana has allocated about one-fourth the 2.91-lakh crore Budget outlay for 2024-25 to agriculture and allied sectors. This includes an allocation of ₹49,383 crore for agriculture and ₹22,301 crore for irrigation.

Hyderabad, which has been the main growth engine for the state, also gets its share in the Budget. The government proposes a ₹10,000 crore plan to spruce up the capital city. It also proposed to expand the Metro Rail network by 78.4 km with an outlay of ₹24,042 crore. As part of the plan, the elevated Metro network will be extended to the Old City and connect to Shamshabad Airport. 

Presenting the State’s full budget for 204-25 in the Assembly on Thursday, Deputy Chief Minister and Finance Minister said that the allocation of a lion’s share of funds to the primary sector was aimed at increasing the financial condition of the farming community, who constituted 47 per cent of the State’s population.

“Though a large number of people are dependent on agriculture for their livelihood, the share of agriculture and allied sectors to the State’s economy is only 15 per cent. The increase in the share of this sector will lead to the economic strengthening of the farmer,” he said.

Launching a scathing attack on the erstwhile Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) Government, the Finance Minister alleged that the previous government’s decisions had pushed the State’s financial condition to a precarious condition.

“The State’s debts which were at ₹75,577 crores at the time of state formation grew by leaps and bounds in 10 years and reached ₹6.71 lakh crore now. However, there was no commensurate development,” he said.

“The substantial rise in debt relative to income growth suggests a heavy dependence on borrowing to fund expenditures, potentially endangering fiscal sustainability. The persistent rise in debt far outstripping income gains suggests that without stringent fiscal reforms, Telangana’s economic health could be at risk. This necessitates measures to balance expenditure with revenue generation and reduce dependence on borrowing,” the Minister said.

In February, the Finance Minister presented a vote-on-account budget with an outlay of ₹2.76 lakh crore. Of the ₹2.91-lakh crore budget for 2024-25, revenue expenditure is pegged at ₹2.20 lakh crore and capital expenditure at ₹33,487 crore, an increase of ₹4,000 crore over the number proposed in the vote-on-account budget.

Macroeconomic scenario

The Finance Minister said the global economy has recorded a growth rate of 3.2 per cent during the year 2023-24, while the Indian economy has recorded a growth rate of 7.6 p.c. and Telangana recorded a growth rate of 7.4 per cent during the period. The State’s growth rate is less than that of the national growth rate,” he said.

At current prices Telangana’s Gross State Domestic Product (GSDP) in 2023-24 is ₹14.63 lakh crore, which is 11.9 per cent higher than the previous year. 

While the services sector has contributed 65.7 per cent to the Gross State Value Added (GSVA), the industrial sector chipped in 18.5 per cent, and the agriculture and allied sector 15.8 per cent to Telangana’s Gross State Value Added (GSVA).

Budget ignores aspirations

BRS President K Chandrashekar Rao has alleged that the Government had ‘backstabbed all sections of society’. Reacting on the Budget proposals, he said it ‘is an anti-farmer budget’.

“It seems the Government has decided to dump the Dalit Bandhu scheme, which was aimed at supporting entrepreneurship to Dalits,” he said.

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