How total State Government Spending changed in the year of the pandemic (2020-21)

Most State Budgets for 2020-21 were prepared before the COVID-19 crisis hit India in full force. This visualisation presents a comparative picture of how States’ spending changed in the wake of the pandemic and the associated economic crisis. Two forces were acting upon States' finances during this period: a fall in revenue and transfers because of the economic slowdown, and the need for greater expenditure to address the pandemic and the humanitarian crisis. As the Union Government’s revenue collection took a hit, transfers to States also fell. This too became an important factor in determining States’ fiscal health. As seen here, most States had to reduce their original estimates, by varying amounts. Therefore Revised Estimates (RE) are lower than Budget Estimates (BE). However, some States increased their spending projections during the year (through the process of the Supplementary Budgets) and their RE is higher than BE for 2020-21.

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