Financial position of State is satisfactory: Chief Minister

Thiruvananthapuram: The financial position of the State is very satisfactory and the financial management by former Finance Minister K. M. Mani is highly appreciable," said Chief Minister Oommen Chandy in a post-budget interaction with the media here on Friday.

The Budget for 2016-17 is a continuation of the budgets presented by Mr. Mani and there is nothing special about it, he added.

The Chief Minister said that the State faced no dearth of money for its major projects. The Government had undertaken works of 100 bridges which would be completed in 400 days.

Responding to the Opposition's remark that the Government has failed on the tax revenue front, the Chief Minister said that the global financial crisis had its impact on the country. As this was happening, Kerala focused on providing maximum relief to the people through various welfare measures.

He noted that measures like phased ban of liquor contributed to a drop in tax collections. Though, these could hinder the revenue, the government continued to ensure that people did not suffer for want of welfare measures.

The Government was providing rice at Rs 1 per kg to the BPL families. Now, the Government proposed to give rice free of cost to those belonging to the BPL category. Currently, the financial commitment in this regard was around Rs. 450 crore. The new proposal would involve additional burden of Rs 50 crore only, the Chief Minister said.