Hyderabad:Budgetary allocation for the prestigious Amaravati investment project in the form of a central loan, partial allocations for financial assistance to school children, silence on the rest of the electoral guarantees and an abnormal increase in expected revenues of alcohol sales have been the strong points of Andhra Pradesh. regular budget for 2024-25.

The N. Chandrababu Naidu-led alliance government, which came to power at the start of the second quarter of the current financial year, has so far taken the vote on the fiscal accounts.

As expected, the financial assistance from external agencies for Amaravati will be a loan but the State could keep it outside the FRBM regulations since it would pass through the Centre.

“We have made a budgetary provision of 6,500 cr for Talliki Deevena, a program aimed at providing financial assistance of 15,000 cr per year per school-going child. The remaining super six guarantees will be fulfilled in a phased manner by tying up funds,” a senior finance official told Deccan Chronicle.

So far, the government has not allocated funds for unemployment benefit, the 1,500 euro per month program for women aged 19 to 59, nor for free bus travel for women. Against a projected requirement of 13,500 cr to cover the 88 lakh school children, the government has allocated 6,500 crore.

On the revenue side, the government has made a budget estimate of 2.94 lakh crores, of which the devolution of central taxes will amount to 50,391 crores, the State Tax Revenue (SOT) being 1, 09 lakh crore, up from the revised estimate of 2023-24. of 85,978 crores and a huge debt of 93,253 crores, of which 71,000 crores will come from open market borrowings.

Importantly, the government expected an increase of almost 10,000 crore in excise revenue, mainly from the sale of alcohol. While a BE of 14,7798 crore was made by the Jagan-led government, it set the revised estimate at 15,997 crore against which the present Naidu government made a BE of 25,597 crore.

“We have revised the excise policy. The revenue was suppressed earlier for extraneous reasons and now it will be rationalized,” the official stressed.

Sources said the government also expected a rise in consumption due to availability of standard liquor, as well as reputed brands, which were no longer available on shelves during Jagan Reddy’s rule.

The budget also hints at a marginal increase in SOT revenue, which could take the form of an additional tax. The state’s sales and commerce taxes recorded an average annual growth of `6,500 crore in the last two financial years, but the Naidu government projected growth of another `7,000 crore.