Fiscal pressures emerging for several states: RBI
Mumbai, July 12 : Fiscal pressures are emerging for several states on the expenditure side, under committed heads, said a Reserve Bank of India (RBI) report, released here on Thursday.
Entitled "State Finances: A Study of Budgets of 2017-18 and 2018-19", the report is an annual publication that provides information, analysis and an assessment of the finances of state governments.
"Visible fiscal pressures are emerging for several states on the expenditure side, particularly under the committed heads and other state-specific schemes like agricultural debt waivers," the RBI said.
According to the report, in 2018-19, states' revenue capacity is likely to be augmented with the stabilization of Goods and Services Tax (GST) and the consequent expansion of tax base and efficacy.
"With the implementation of the E-way bill for inter-state movement of goods from April 2018, states could also strive for generating more revenues by locking in efficiency in tax administration," the report said.
If the revenue receipts of the states end up again in shortfall relative to budgeted levels, then better fiscal marksmanship and efficiency of expenditure is needed for providing robustness to state finances, it added.
While states' consolidated gross fiscal deficit (GFD) overshot the budget estimates in 2017-18 due to shortfalls in own tax revenues and higher revenue expenditure, for 2018-19, states have budgeted for a correction, mainly emanating from a modest revenue surplus.
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AIITA welcomes Karnataka’s ban on obscene songs in school events
Bhatkal: The Karnataka unit of the All India Ideal Teachers Association (AIITA) has welcomed the Karnataka government’s decision to strictly ban school children from dancing to obscene songs during educational and cultural programmes in government, aided, and private schools across the state.
AIITA Karnataka State President M. R. Manvi congratulated the government for taking what he termed an important step to preserve the sanctity of education.
“Such decisions to safeguard the dignity of school children and uphold the values of education are the need of the hour. This rule should not be limited to government schools alone but must be strictly implemented in all private educational institutions as well,” he said.
He further urged the government to address other concerns within school programmes.
“The government should not only prohibit obscene dances in the name of school anniversaries, but also ensure that plays and dialogues that incite religious hatred are avoided. Schools should be centres of harmony, not platforms for spreading hatred,” he added.
According to a recent circular issued by the Department of School Education and Literacy, obscene dances are adversely affecting the mental health and moral values of students.
In this regard, schools have been advised to use songs that promote nationalism, positive thinking, the greatness of Kannada culture, and value-based traditions instead of inappropriate content during programmes.
The circular also emphasises that students should be dressed in decent attire.
AIITA also backed the department’s warning that disciplinary action would be taken against head teachers if such guidelines are violated. The association has further demanded that district Deputy Directors of Public Instruction strictly monitor the implementation of these rules.
