In Karnataka, petrol and diesel are going to cost more. The Congress government there is implementing a fuel price hike in order to raise its revenues, which it says will be deployed to "support guarantee schemes". Petrol prices in Bengaluru are up by Rs 3 per litre, while diesel in the capital city are up by Rs 3.02 per litre. As per LiveMint, Karnataka's State Minister for Commerce and Industries MB Patil has justified the decision to burden the public. "How else do you get money to fund welfare schemes?" This is a narrative the Congress government will be promoting in the coming years.
Very soon, something similar could be witnessed in Andhra Pradesh. The TDP-led NDA government in the State dislodged the YSRCP government recently by promising voters the moon in terms of unsustainable welfare promises. The manifesto didn't care about the health of the state finances. The state government will need to raise fuel taxes in order to raise funds.
Given the nature of the promises made to voters by Chandrababu Naidu, the state fisc is inevitably going to take a hit in due course of time. "The state government has a committed expenditure of nearly Rs 1.30 lakh crore annually to meet the requirements of salaries, pensions, loan repayments and interests," a senior bureaucrat was recently quoted by Hindustan Times as saying. AP is going to need Rs 2,600 crore every month to meet the social pension alone, the report added.
