The State government is planning to build on this growth and improve its revenue sources.
Published Date – 25 February 2024, 06:18 PM
Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy addressing a public meeting at Kosgi.
Hyderabad: In a bid to fulfill its electoral promises and meet the budgetary requirements, the Congress-led State government has begun efforts to enhance revenue collections. Besides focusing on improved tax collections, the government aims to maximise Central grants and funds allocated under Centrally Sponsored schemes.
Telangana has been consistently witnessing an increased State own tax revenue (SOTR) over the last few years.
Between 2014-15 and 2022-23, the State revenue grew from Rs.29,288 crore to Rs.1.06 lakh crore by an average 18.3 per cent which is significantly higher than the national state average of 10.9 per cent. Till December this fiscal, the SOTR was recorded at Rs.99,693 crore, which is an increase of Rs.7,626 crore compared to the corresponding period of the previous financial year.
The State government is planning to build on this growth and improve its revenue sources.
Officials have reportedly drafted proposals to increase certain taxes and charges, encompassing areas such as land registration, excise, mining, RTC fares, transport, property taxes, and electricity tariffs among others. Except for land registration charges and excise duties, the rest have not witnessed any major increase in the last few years.
However, Chief Minister ARevanth Reddy is yet to take a decision on the issue, as a meeting scheduled to be held on Saturday for this purpose was postponed. Sources indicate that the Chief Minister is keen to avoid unnecessary burden on taxpayers.
Nevertheless, officials have been directed to explore alternative avenues to optimise tax collections. One proposal under consideration is the collection of pending tax arrears, akin to the recent successful collection of pending challans against vehicles, offering a one-time discount. Another proposal is to hike indirect taxes like excise revenue.
The State government has allocated a significant outlay of Rs.40,080 crore for the Panchayat Raj and Rural Development department, along with an additional Rs.11,692 crore for the Municipal Administration and Urban Development department.
Official sources said a major portion of these funds would be mobilised through effective tax collections at the local body level and also optimum usage of Central funds in addition to the State’s share.
“The focus is on achieving cent percent tax collections, and necessary instructions have been issued to both departments.
Further, necessary matching grants have been allocated to maximise the Central funds share under various schemes.
Proposals to increase local taxes like property taxes and drinking water supply charges are also under consideration,” a senior official from the Finance department told Telangana Today.
