During the first day of the state legislature's winter session, the state government made further demands totalling INR 35,788 crore. Including the 94,889 that was tabled in July of this year, this brings the total amount of additional demands submitted in the current fiscal year to INR 1,30,677 crore. Thus far, 19.43% of the state budget has been allocated to extra demands; this percentage is anticipated to increase once the final supplementary requests are presented in February or March 2025.
The additional requests are a budgetary addition to Maharashtra's INR 6.69 lakh crore budget that is intended to cover unforeseen expenses. According to experts, they should normally account for about 10% of the budget; going beyond this amount is regarded as fiscal indiscipline. It's anticipated that the supplemental demands presented on Monday, December 16, will raise the already estimated 1,10,355 crore fiscal deficit.
In light of the INR 7.83 lakh crore debt stock in FY 2024–2025, the enlarged supplemental budget carries the potential of additional borrowings. An official from the finance department stated that the higher spending indicated in the supplemental demands would require either greater borrowings or a reduction in the budgetary allotment for development projects.
Due to the populist plans the state administration had made in advance of the assembly elections, the government submitted supplemental demands totalling INR 94,889 crore in July. One of the programs that received significant funding was the Ladki Bahin Yojana, which needs INR 46,000 crore annually to deposit INR 1,500 per month into the bank accounts of 2.34 crore beneficiaries.
The Annapurna Yojana, which provides three free LPG cylinders, and another program that gives young people a monthly stipend of INR 6,000 to INR 10,000 have also put a significant strain on the state exchequer, forcing the government to make an additional financial provision.
The supplemental claims made in the current fiscal year are anticipated to eventually total more than 22% of the state budget, according to Rupesh Keer of Samarthan, an NGO that researches the state budget. Three years ago, when he was the leader of the opposition, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis stated at a book release event that the additional requests should not exceed seven to ten percent of the overall budget. How has he permitted such an enormous amount as supplemental demands in his capacity as CM? The government has occasionally been criticised by the Comptroller and Auditor General for its excessive supplemental demands. Since there is no correlation between the government's real expenditure and its financial allocation, it also called into doubt the government's fiscal management, he said.
The Ladki Bahin project will receive INR 1,400 crore as part of the supplemental demands that were presented to both houses of the state legislature. In addition to spending INR 3,700 crore on the program since July 1st of this year, the state government has already allocated INR 35,000 crore through the end of the fiscal year.
The supplemental budget includes INR 450 crore for financial aid to children who became orphaned during the COVID-19 pandemic; INR 209 crore for the construction of Manora, an MLA hostel at Nariman Point; INR 60 crore for the enrolment of Dhangar community students in residential English schools; INR 557 crore to be transferred to Mumbai Metro Rail Corporation Limited for Metro line 3; and INR 601 crore for the Pune Metro.
The transgender welfare board will receive 10 crores, the state government will contribute INR 103 crore to the development of Wadhwan port, Home Guards will receive INR 214 crore as an honorarium, and a capital expenditure of INR 500 crore will be used to install an intelligent transport system on the Samruddhi Highway between Mumbai and Nagpur.