After being announced as the finance minister of Maharashtra, senior BJP leader Sudhir Mungantiwar said he would give priority to introducing fiscal discipline and reducing the burgeoning revenue deficit. He also promised to ensure that public money was utilised properly.
"The priority of the finance department will be of tackling the massive debt burden, fiscal deficit and bringing in fiscal discipline," Mungantiwar, a five-term MLA from Ballarpur in Vidarbha's Chandrapur district, told dna. He was also a minister in the erstwhile Shiv Sena and BJP-led government and a former BJP state chief.
@New finance minister faces daunting task As the state's new finance minister, Mungantiwar faces the daunting task of tackling the poor state of Maharashtra's finances, which is reeling under an over Rs3 lakh-crore debt burden. The state, while leaning on its past laurels as the best administered and an economic powerhouse, has chosen to turn a blind eye to the harsh, changing realities.
"The state has an over Rs3 lakh crore debt burden. I will try to reduce it and also get some pending funds from the Centre," said Mungantiwar, ruing that the state had failed to take advantage of some centrally-funded schemes like eco-tourism and bamboo mission earlier. The bamboo mission will be approved and launched this week, he promised.
In 2013-14, the then deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar had presented a Rs184.38 crore revenue surplus budget. However, populist measures and aid for victims of natural calamities took the finances further into the red. Pawar's interim budget for 2014-15 had a massive Rs5,417.28 crore revenue deficit. The state, which claims to have attracted the highest foreign direct investment (FDI), also needs to boost its industries sector.
@Tough test of octroi-LBT issue
And this is not the end of bad news. Traders, who had earlier sought that the much reviled octroi be abolished and replaced with LBT, are now clamouring for this faith-based levy to be scrapped and an extra surcharge be levied on value added tax (VAT) instead. The BJP had supported this demand by the powerful lobby, but after coming to power, will have to face the challenge of dismounting the tiger.
"Every penny of public money will be used fruitfully," said Mungantiwar. He added that chief minister Devendra Fadnavis had also taken up the contentious issue of LBT. "A large number of appeals (regarding tax claims) are pending for years. We will dispose them soon," he said.
Mungantiwar's predecesors like Jayant Patil have also sought that a larger share of revenues be devolved to Maharashtra. Mumbai, the financial capital of India, accounts for around a third of India's total direct tax collection, which include income tax, corporate tax and wealth tax.
@More forest cover in agenda
Mungantiwar, whose home district has large forest cover and a wildlife sanctuary (Tadoba), has also been entrusted with the forests portfolio. He said they would work to ensure that the state achieved 33% of forest cover.
Maharashtra accounts for 9.36% of India's total area and has 19.94% of geographical area under forest cover, as against the target of 33% under the National Forest Policy, 1988. In 2011-12, the geographical area under forests in the state was 61,358 sq km, down from 63,544 sq km in 1960-61.
Forests are the second largest land use in Maharashtra after agriculture. The state forest department statistics reveal that the area under encroachments in forests has increased from 80,108 hectare in 2005-6 to 86,213 hectare in 2011-12.
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