Andhra Pradesh Budget Triggers Heated Political Debate
The recently presented state budget for Andhra Pradesh has ignited a sharp political divide, with ruling coalition partners praising its forward-looking vision while opposition forces condemn it as fundamentally flawed and deceptive.
NDA Coalition Applauds Fiscal Discipline and Development Focus
Yanamala Ramakrishnudu, senior TDP leader and former finance minister, emphasized that the budget successfully balances stringent fiscal discipline with the state's pressing development requirements. He highlighted that the carefully structured allocations demonstrate a genuine effort to meet public expectations while prioritizing long-term outcomes. Ramakrishnudu specifically noted the government's emphasis on controlling borrowings and systematically reducing the state's interest burden as particularly commendable. He further appreciated the strategic steps taken to reschedule existing loans and lower interest rates, which collectively work to ease the substantial debt burden.
Nadendla Manohar, Jana Sena PAC chairman and civil supplies minister, described the budget as a crucial instrument designed to redirect a previously derailed system from financial crisis toward tangible progress and from destruction toward sustainable development. He pointed to concrete evidence of financial recovery, including a significant 16% increase in capital expenditure to ₹53,917 crore from last year's ₹39,498 crore, alongside projected tax revenue collections rising to ₹1,25,846 crore from ₹98,025 crore.
PVN Madhav, BJP state president, underscored a historic achievement, noting that the budget deficit is being effectively controlled for the first time since the state's formation, with clear steps toward wealth creation. He revealed that investments totaling approximately ₹14 lakh crore have flowed into the state over the past 20 months, promising that large-scale employment opportunities will materialize once these investments are fully operationalized.
Opposition Parties Launch Scathing Criticism
In stark contrast, the opposition YSRCP has launched a fierce attack, branding the budget document a bundle of lies and alleging that the presented revenue figures do not align with the government's growth claims.
Buggana Rajendranath, former finance minister, accused the state government of deliberately altering the budget book format to conceal critical data and avoid an unfavorable ten-year comparison. He asserted that none of the election promises have been fulfilled, while government loans have alarmingly exceeded ₹3 lakh crore. Rajendranath claimed that under the previous administration, the state achieved a robust 9% growth rate, which has dramatically plummeted to a mere 4.5% during the current coalition government's tenure.
Y S Sharmila, APCC president, dismissed the budget as old wine in a new bottle, arguing that the proposals are based more on imagination and fabrication than on reality. She contended that the large figures presented merely mask a rapidly growing debt burden. Sharmila emphasized that the allocations fail to match the promises made during the elections, with the much-publicized Super Six guarantees being particularly compromised.
The budget has thus become a focal point for intense political contention, reflecting deeper ideological divides regarding fiscal management, development priorities, and governance transparency in Andhra Pradesh.
