Though union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman, who was known as a strong supporter of former chief minister YS Jaganmohan Reddy in the central government, has given a patient hearing during her meeting with AP Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu on Friday.
But, she has reportedly non- committal on centre’s assistance to the state, which is locked up in severe financial strains. Naidu has been vocal about the State’s financial distress and sought increased Central support to tide over the fiscal challenges, when he met with Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
The meeting assumes significance as it comes just weeks before the presentation of the Union Budget 2024-25. The sources indicated that she only gave an assurance that she will look into Andhra Pradesh’s demands `within the broader fiscal constraints’.
It may be recalled that some time ago she described Jaganmohan Reddy as `adopted son of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’, at an official meeting in Anantapur district. Inspite of previous AP government’s irregular financial management, she used to try to protect him from taking any severe action.
During his frequent visits to New Delhi, Jaganmohan Reddy used to meet only Home Minister Amit Shah and Nirmala Sitharaman, besides sometimes Prime Minister Narendra Modi. He hardly met other ministers unlike Chandrababu Naidu, who has met as many as 10 union ministers during his three-day visit.
Naidu has been pressing for enhanced financial support to the debt-burdened State. He highlighted various ongoing projects in the state that require urgent Central assistance. According to official sources, the Chief Minister presented a detailed memorandum outlining the State’s financial requirements and the rationale behind the demand for increased allocation.
According to the State government data, the public debt of Andhra Pradesh has increased from 31.02 per cent of the Gross State Domestic Product (GSDP) in 2019-20 to 33.32 per cent in 2023-24 fiscal, indicating deterioration in the fiscal health of the State in the last five years.
Most prominently, the union finance ministry is creating hurdles with regard to the Polavaram project, without giving its approval to the revised estimates. Though technical clearance was given by the experts in the Jala Shakthi ministry, the finance ministry kept it pending for more than six years.
Naidu’s demands include special assistance for backward regions, and support for the development of the new capital, Amaravati. The Chief Minister also sought resolution of pending issues stemming from the bifurcation of the erstwhile Andhra Pradesh.