Chandigarh, November 17: The cash-crunched Punjab government has decided to regularly review its fiscal condition, with focus on expenditure curtailment and resource mobilization.
A cabinet sub-committee, headed by Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh, has been set up for this purpose. The sub-committee will meet every Tuesday to discuss ways and means of cutting down on expenses and generate resources to meet the state’s requirements and boost its economy.
Besides the Chief Minister, the sub-committee comprises Brahm Mohindra, Minister for Health and Family Welfare, Research and Medical Education, Parliamentary Affairs, and Manpreet Badal, Minister for Finance.
The decision to set up the sub-committee was taken by the Council of Ministers, which met here on Friday under the chairmanship of Captain Amarinder Singh. Taking serious note of the state’s fiscal crisis, the cabinet stressed the need for a regular high-level review of the same and proactive steps to tackle it.
With a debt burden of Rs 2,08,000 crore, fiscal deficit of Rs 34,000 crore and revenue deficit of Rs 13,000 crore, the Congress government in the state is battling a major challenge as it strives to combat the fiscal crisis inherited from the erstwhile SAD-BJP government.
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