Indian Fiscal Federalism

Centrally Sponsored Schemes have complemented state fiscal capacity by improving access to essential public services while reducing regional disparities

Revenue gaps and structural spending imbalances weigh on their finances, squeezing crucial infrastructure growth

They handle Budgets and laws, but their dismal sitting days shows a lack of debate & scrutiny

Seat redistribution through delimitation could reshape India's fiscal balance, affecting how funds are distributed and how states negotiate resources

The five messages of FC-16 put together reflect that states need to be more self-reliant in raising resources

ICRA, in its report on Budget expectations, estimated the fiscal deficit target for FY2026 to be set at 4.5 per cent of GDP

India's post-pandemic fiscal architecture should be anchored in debt and be holistic (encompassing Centre and states), dynamic (responsive to changing macro conditions), and conservative

Here is the best of Business Standard's opinion pieces for today

States need engines of growth

Concerns over distribution must not be allowed to fester

The Goods and Services Tax regime has altered the contours of fiscal federalism in India, and steady growth of GST revenue is a robust barometer of the reform's success, Economic Advisory Council to the PM (EAC-PM) chairman Bibek Debroy said. In a working paper titled 'How the Pennies Drop: What GST revenue data tells us and What it doesn't', Debroy also proposed constructing a GST Rate Index to help track relative movements of the tax rates and get a sense of how it impacts tax collections and taxpayer behaviour. "The introduction of a Goods and Services Tax (GST) in India in 2017 not only impacted the economy but it also altered the contours of fiscal federalism in India. "Amongst others, the steady growth of GST revenue has been a robust barometer of the success of the reform," he said. Debroy also suggested a novel mechanism for computing the collection rate of GST, using only publicly available data, saying this has potential applications in revenue modelling; analysis of tren

Coming to this year's Budget Session, there were only 15 Bills pending before Parliament since the start of the 17th LS in 2019, says Roy

The government has taken laudable steps to support and propel the economy in these difficult times, but a lot more still needs to be done, writes Vikas Vasal

To minimise risks, the president may consider seeking response from states and the Centre on the 15th Finance Commission's suggestions

Another critical but often neglected issue in India's fiscal debates is that of the phenomenal rise in the share of cesses and surcharged levied in the recent past