K'taka will continue to fight for its rights against the 'injustices' of Modi govt: CM Siddaramaiah
Bengaluru, Feb 21 (PTI): Emphasising that Karnataka's economy is strong enough to withstand the BJP's alleged "betrayals", Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Friday said, the state will continue to fight for its rights against the "injustices" of the saffron party-led central government under Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
He also urged the opposition in the state to stop spreading lies and to join hands with his government in working for the welfare of Karnataka's people.
The Chief Minister said this in response to the allegations made by opposition leaders, including BJP State President B Y Vijayendra, former CM and MP Basavaraj Bommai, and others, regarding the state's financial situation, while noting that they have claimed that the state's economy is declining, and that Karnataka is heading towards bankruptcy, and that the financial system has collapsed.
"The reality is that during the BJP's rule, the state's economy was pushed to the brink of collapse. Now, while sitting in the opposition, they are speaking as if they are great economists. Our government is working hard to bring the state's economy back on track after the mismanagement and chaos caused by the BJP's irresponsible financial policies. It is unfortunate that the BJP cannot accept or understand this," he said in a statement.
Insisting that Karnataka's economy remains strong, the CM said, the state's average budget growth over the last two years is 18.3 per cent, compared to just 5 per cent during the BJP's four-year rule. The state's own tax revenue growth is 15 per cent, compared to 11 per cent during the BJP's tenure.
"We are providing over Rs 90,000 crore annually directly to the people through DBT and subsidies, including Rs 10,400 crore for senior citizens, disabled persons, widows, and others," he said. The central government contributes only Rs 450 crore, the same as during former PM Manmohan Singh's tenure, he added.
"What has the BJP done for Karnataka?" CM asked.
Karnataka's fiscal discipline is intact. The fiscal deficit is below 3 per cent, and total liabilities are within 25 percent of GSDP, he further said that "during the BJP's rule, these were out of control. Our capital expenditure is better than neighboring progressive states."
Despite the BJP's "conspiracies and betrayals", Karnataka continues to stand strong and the state government is providing over Rs 52,000 crore for guarantee schemes and supporting farmers in distress, Siddaramaiah said.
"We are fulfilling our promises to Kalyan Karnataka and providing grants to all parts of the state, including Bengaluru. While Bommai, as Water Resources Minister, failed to release funds for the Krishna Upper Bank project, our government has decided to complete the land acquisition process," he said, adding that the government has also implemented the 7th Pay Commission report.
Claiming that his government's strong economy and good governance have attracted investments worth Rs 10.27 lakh crore at the recent Invest Karnataka event, the CM said, despite this, the BJP continues to criticize the state's financial situation for political reasons.
Alleging that PM Modi's economic policies have destabilised state finances, he said, in March 2014 all states' combined debt was Rs 25 lakh crore.
"Now, it has exceeded Rs 95 lakh crore, an increase of Rs 70 lakh crore in 10 years. States are suffering due to the central government's policies, and the central economy is also weakening," he added.
He has also listed out certain alleged mismanagements by the BJP in the state while it was in power. He has also accused the Modi government of doing great injustice to Karnataka in tax devolution.
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Rupee falls 30 paise to 95.94 against US dollar in early trade
Mumbai (PTI): The rupee opened on a weaker note and fell 30 paise to 95.94 on Friday after hitting new lows over three straight sessions, as elevated crude oil prices, a strong dollar, and concerns over the West Asia crisis weighed on investor sentiment.
Forex traders said USDINR is under pressure and hovering very close to the 96 mark as dollar buying continues amid upside in oil prices.
Moreover, the Summit between US President Trump and Chinese President Xi did not yield any fruitful results, particularly on the US-Iran front, denting investor sentiments further.
The USD/INR pair, which had slumped to 95.96 against the American currency on Thursday, recovered sharply after reports surfaced that India is considering a major cut in taxes paid by foreign investors on Indian bonds.
On Friday, the government hiked the petrol and diesel prices by Rs 3 per liter in the latest move to curb the demand of these fuels.
At the interbank foreign exchange market, the rupee opened at 95.86, then fell further to 95.94 against the US dollar, registering a fall of 30 paise from its previous close.
The rupee weakened to a fresh record low of 95.96 before closing with a marginal gain of 2 paise at 95.64 against the US dollar on Thursday.
Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback's strength against a basket of six currencies, was trading at 99.05, higher by 0.24 per cent.
Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, was trading up 1.30 per cent at USD 107.09 per barrel in futures trade.
On the domestic equity market front, Sensex rose 239.14 points to 75,637.86 in early trade, while the Nifty was trading 78.30 points higher at 23,767.90.
"The Dollar Index rose for a fourth straight session after strong US retail sales and stable labour market data reduced expectations of aggressive Federal Reserve rate cuts," CR Forex Advisors MD – Amit Pabari said.
Adding another layer of uncertainty for the rupee was the closely watched meeting between US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping. While both sides tried to maintain stability, disagreements over Taiwan and China’s continued oil purchases from Iran kept geopolitical concerns alive.
"And whenever uncertainty rises globally, the dollar usually becomes the market’s preferred safe place. For now, the rupee remains caught between policy support at home and global pressure from oil, inflation, and the dollar abroad," Pabari added.
Foreign Institutional Investors turned net buyers purchasing equities worth Rs 187.46 crore on Thursday, according to exchange data.
Meanwhile, the government on Thursday imposed a limit of 100 kg on gold imports under the Advance Authorisation scheme, which allows jewellery exporters to import raw or input materials at zero duty.
The government has tightened the conditions for issuing and monitoring advance authorisation for the import of gold. Earlier, there was no limit on gold imports under the scheme.
The Advance Authorisation scheme allows the duty-free import of inputs that are incorporated into an export product. In addition to any inputs, packaging material, fuel, oil, and catalyst that are consumed or utilised in the process of production of export products, are also allowed.
