BHUBANESWAR: The state government has been allowed to raise Rs 2,725 crore in the shape of additional borrowing from the Centre for accelerating power sector reforms. Odisha is among the 12 states which was granted permission by the Ministry of Finance on Wednesday to avail financial incentive for the ongoing reforms process which started since the late nineties.
“On the recommendations of the Ministry of Power, the Ministry of Finance has granted permission for reforms undertaken in 2021-22 and 2022-23 to 12 state governments. Over the last two financial years, they have been allowed to raise financial resources of Rs 66,413 crore through additional borrowing permissions,” said an official statement of the Finance Ministry.
The initiative was announced by Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in the Union Budget for 2021-22. Under this initiative, an additional borrowing space of up to 0.5 per cent of the gross state domestic product (GSDP) is available to states annually for a four-year period from 2021-22 to 2024-25. This additional financial window is dependent on the implementation of specific reforms in the power sector by the states, it added.