CHENNAI: Tamil Nadu has incurred a capital expenditure of Rs 11,000 crore in major infrastructure projects between April 2023 and August 2023, according to information accessed by TNIE.
Capital expenditure is critical for promoting economic growth by creating demand for goods and services, boosting private-sector investment and increasing job opportunities. The government has been tracking projects since April 19, 2021. Currently, the projects are under direct review of CM M K Stalin, who launched the e-Munnetram portal which monitors projects above Rs 100 crore.
The government has brought in projects pertaining to an additional nine departments, unlike the previous reviews which were limited to only six administrative departments. The change could be attributed to former finance minister Palanivel Thiaga Rajan, who had stressed the need to bring in additional departments to ensure data tracking of projects that are more than Rs 100 crore.
In August, Finance Minister Thangam Thennarasu reviewed 347 projects implemented by 15 administrative departments with 56 heads of departments at a cost of Rs 1.55 lakh crore. It was suggested that if the capital expenditure is increased, the scope of economic growth and infrastructure development of the state will be greater. Sources said this time 69 new projects have been added when compared to the last review in April. This has resulted in adding up to Rs 27,332 crore to the total investment cost.
The Capex of Rs 11,000 crore is quite high when compared to the previous period from April to September 2022 when it was around Rs 7,800 crore. This comes to approximately Rs 1,300 crore a month. During this financial year, capital expenditure when worked out till August is around Rs 2,000 crore.
Of the 347 projects, 75 have been completed. Forty are yet to be started aggregating a total expenditure of Rs 81,695 crore. The delay in non-implementation of the Rs 12,264-crore Upper thermal power plant in Ramanathapuram district and Rs 5,000-crore Ennore Thermal Power station was a matter of concern and the government is likely to take a decision soon.
However, it is not known whether the government is pursuing the suggestion of a unique identifier like Goods and Service Tax Network or an Aadhaar database of contractors to be created which
can be used across the departments to understand if the works are being taken up by the contractors for their evaluation.