Assam govt has started working with Rs 10,000 cr liability: Sarma

Assam government today said it has started functioning with a liability of over Rs 10,000 crore and it is "unlikely" to start any developmental programme in the near future.
"After a serious stock-taking exercise, the new government realised that in its first year in office, it has to attend to the committed liabilities of more than Rs 10,000 crore before it can think of any developmental programmes for the state," a White Paper on Assam State Finances, said.
Tabling the document in the Assembly, Finance Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said the new government has to start its journey with an extremely negative financial position, mainly due to "imprudent and extravagant public financial management systems" in the last 15 years.

"Internal resources generation was not given enough stress and the state did not have enough funds to meet the budgetary provisions.
"Even the records show that periodic and frequent reviews were also not held on regular basis at the highest level with the revenue earning departments," the document claimed.
Reacting to this, former chief minister Tarun Gogoi accused the Centre of cutting grants for the state by abolishing the Special Category Status category and changing the funding pattern.
On this, the Finance Minister claimed the Centre has not done so and the Special Category Status was still "intact with respect to Assam".