VIJAYAWADA: Economics expert and former Special Chief Secretary PV Ramesh expressed concern over the deteriorating state of Andhra Pradesh’s economy, pointing out that capital expenditure had fallen to less than 4 per cent over the past decade.
Speaking at a discussion organised by Jana Chaitanya Vedika in Guntur district on Sunday, PV Ramesh highlighted that Andhra Pradesh ranked 17th among 18 States in the latest fiscal health index by Niti Aayog, while topping the list in borrowings.
“From 2014 to 2023, the State had to borrow 20 per cent more each year, while its revenue decreased by 6 per cent annually,” he noted.
He criticised how the Comprehensive Financial Management System (CFMS) lost its original purpose and instead became a tool to serve political parties, which, he said, had turned into monopolies.
The former special chief secretary also slammed political parties for fostering divisions based on caste, creed, religion, and region, and lamented the lack of message-oriented Telugu films.
Former Minister Dokka Manikya Vara Prasad, speaking at the event, said the freebie culture had become a political norm, but insisted that people want jobs and employment, not handouts.
The former special chief secretary also accused the BJP of adopting a double standard on freebies during the recent Delhi elections.
Jana Chaitanya Vedika president V Lakshman Reddy and others also spoke at the discussion.