Increasing borrowing limit
Shillong, Sept 9: Leader of Opposition Mukul Sangma has warned the state government of dragging Meghalaya to a “disastrous future” by further increasing its borrowing limit.
Raising a red flag on the issue, Sangma said, “You (government) are further borrowing to service the repayment of principal and interest. This is where the concern lies and this is where the government is lying to the people.”
The government is leading the state “to a disastrous future” as already reflected by the “red flag raised by the CAG”, said the former chief minister.
Seeking to explain the matter, he said, “(The government is) Borrowing and then borrowing to repay both principal and interest. That is why CAG in a nutshell indicated its concern and the government has the audacity to hide the truth.”
“You don’t expect your parents to borrow and borrow and leave behind the burden of debt upon you as children. That is not what sensible parents do,” he said.
Accusing the government of amending provisions of Meghalaya Fiscal Responsibility and Budget Management (MFRBM) Act, 2006 to borrow more, he said
“Fiscal deficit target of 2018-19 was 3.25%, but in reality, it was 6.3%, a huge deviation. In 2019-20, the fiscal deficit was 4.35% whereas during our time it was merely 3% and we never breached this limit,” he said.
He also questioned the revenue target of saying, “Revenue target for 2021 was 5.25%. You cannot imagine from 3% you go to 4-5%. That is what I am referring to as modus operandi.
