Andhra Pradesh suffered Rs 66,116 crore loss between 2019-22 due to Covid pandemic: CM

Amaravati, Feb 6 (PTI) Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy on Tuesday said the state suffered an unprecedented decline in revenue due to the Covid-19 pandemic, pegging the loss at Rs 66,116 crore between 2019-22.

Making a presentation on the state of finances in Andhra Pradesh Legislative Assembly, the chief minister said that despite a drop in tax devolution amount from the Central government and at the same time facing a fiscal deficit, the YSRCP government delivered "great governance in the last five years".

"After coming to power, we faced unprecedented challenges. The state’s income plummeted. Expenses increased unexpectedly, and as far as I know, we never even imagined that a Covid-like situation would arise,” Reddy said, addressing the house.

According to the CM, the state’s financial problems were compounded by unprecedented expenses due to the pandemic, which necessitated extending aid to people, among other measures.

Though Andhra Pradesh could have generated a revenue of Rs 2.24 lakh crore at a compounded annual growth rate of 13.8 per cent, it earned a revenue of only Rs 1.15 lakh crore, due to Covid, he said.

Furthermore, Reddy noted that the state’s share of Central taxes as a percentage of GSDP declined from 3.75 per cent in 2018-19 to 2.94 per cent in 2022-23.

The chief minister also informed the house that Andhra Pradesh is incurring a loss of Rs 13,000 crore every financial year due to the "biased distribution of assets" under the AP Reorganisation Act.

Justifying his emphasis on developing the port city of Visakhapatnam, he stated that cities that are economic powerhouses, such as Hyderabad and Chennai, are absolutely essential for any state.

Lamenting that united Andhra Pradesh was unjustly divided, the CM said that had a written agreement been given on special category status instead of an oral assurance, a legal battle could have been waged for it.

Now, the only possibility for the state to obtain special category status is if a favourable Central government which needs Andhra Pradesh’s support is elected.

Among other details, Reddy underscored that the YSRCP government has deposited Rs 2.55 lakh into the bank accounts of poor beneficiaries through direct benefit transfer (DBT) schemes in a transparent manner, which allegedly was not the case in the former TDP regime led by N Chandrababu Naidu.

Accusing the opposition parties of having united together to conspire against YSRCP, Reddy claimed they were scared of the government that delivered welfare and development.

Earlier, when the second day of Andhra Pradesh Assembly's budget session began, TDP MLAs protested with slogans in the house over the alleged increase in prices of essential commodities, power and fuel.

A group of TDP legislators including N Balakrishna and others, led by party state president K Atchen Naidu, stood before Speaker T Sitaram's podium holding placards and raised slogans referring to the price rise.

Following the ruckus, the speaker suspended several TDP MLAs for a day.

Sitaram also announced in the house that he was accepting the resignation of TDP MLA G Srinivas Rao from Visakhapatnam North constituency.

On behalf of Chief Minister Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy, Deputy Chief Minister Amjad Basha moved the Andhra Pradesh Advocates' Welfare Fund (Amendment) Bill, 2024, among other proceedings.

Later, the Speaker passed three condolence motions on the demise of three members of the House V Ramakrishna Chowdary, A Jagadeesh and P Kalikamba. PTI STH ANE