The unexpected catastrophe in the form of Coronavirus spread has crippled the economy of the country in a big way. Naturally, it has had a huge impact on the financial position of the Telangana and Andhra Pradesh governments as well.
Both the states have already announced that they were facing tight financial position due to reduction in devolution of revenues from centre, fall in revenues from various sectors and increasing expenditure on welfare schemes.
Now, the Coronavirus impact has totally paralysed their revenue resources. As Telangana chief minister K Chandrasekhar Rao said on Sunday, the state has lost over Rs 15,000 crore revenue from GST and other resources in the last 15 days due to Coronavirus threat.
Answering a question from the media, KCR indirectly hinted at curtailing the expenditure on various fronts, especially with regard to payment of salaries to the state government employees.
Sources said KCR is contemplating a 50 per cent cut in the salaries of employees in the next couple of months because of the financial position.
“The employees have to tighten their belts. They should eat only once a day, instead of twice now and consume only one vegetable instead of two. They should keep the country’s interest in mind,” he said.
It is going to be a big shock to the state government employees, who are already agitated over the delay in implementation of Pay Revision Commission. But they cannot do anything, as they are aware how Coronavirus has hit the economy of the entire world.
Even in Andhra Pradesh, chief minister Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy is learnt to have asked his finance department authorities to work out the possibility of cutting down the salaries of employees by 50 per cent. The announcement might come in a day or two.