HYDERABAD: Finance Minister T Harish Rao on Thursday said that his heartbeat quickened after Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao announced a number of sops to the TSRTC employees recently.
Speaking at the Chief Financial Officers’ Conclave, organised by the Confederation of Indian Industries (CII), Harish Rao said that when he was the Irrigation Minister he used to spend a lot of money on construction of irrigation projects on a fast-track mode, but as a Finance Minister, he had a different role now.
Reducing the wasteful expenditure would equal to creating wealth. Whether it is a company or a State, financial discipline is a must, Harish Rao said.
Stating that for every company, the role of chief financial officer (CFO) was very crucial, the Finance Minister described himself as a chief financial officer of the State government.
The CFOs should work for the development of their respective companies. The country’s economy is yet to recover from the slowdown, Harish Rao said, adding: “When the GDP of the country and GSDP of the State are reducing, proper utilisation of funds and mobilising the resources are crucial.”
Buying capacity
He said that the Telangana government supported the industries which invested in the State and won several awards in ease of doing business.
As the Centre reduced corporate tax, it would be helpful for the investors to start new industries, he said.
Due to unemployment, the majority of youth have no purchasing capacity.
If employment is created by starting new industries, it would increase the purchasing capacity and create demand for the goods, he opined.
He called upon the industrialists to adopt innovative methods to overcome the present slowdown of the economy. He assured that the incentives pending with the State government would be released soon to the industries.
Harish Rao also suggested the financial officers to do yoga and pranayama to get relief from mental stress.