Kerala debt Rs 5.07 lakh crore: White Paper sparks ruling UDF vs LDF showdown

Key points

• Kerala Chief Minister VD Satheesan on Thursday tabled a white paper on the state's financial health in the Assembly, revealing a debt burden of Rs 5.07 lakh crore, rising liabilities, mounting losses on public sector undertakings (PSUs) and one of the lowest levels of capital expenditure among Indian states.
• The document immediately triggered a showdown between the ruling United Democratic Front (UDF) government and the opposition Left Democratic Front (LDF), which questioned the contents of the report.
• According to the white paper, Kerala is currently burdened by outstanding liabilities of Rs 5.07 lakh crore.
• The report also highlighted that committed expenditure accounts for 77 per cent of the state's total revenue receipts (TRR), while interest payments alone consume 20.9 per cent of TRR.
• The government further noted that Kerala's capital expenditure stands at just 1.3 per cent of its Gross State Domestic Product (GSDP), one of the...