Delhi is not debt-free state; Telugu newspaper's claim is false
A Telugu newspaper claims that Delhi is the only debt-free state in the country.
By Newsmeter Network Published on 9 Feb 2022 5:00 AM GMT
HYDERABAD: A Telugu newspaper claims that Delhi is the only debt-free state in the country.
FACT CHECK:
NewsMeter checked the 2021-22 Delhi budget speech and found that the Delhi Finance Minister said the state has kept its outstanding debt at Rs 31,135 crore till March 2020 through efficient and effective financial management and that Delhi's outstanding debt has declined from 5.90 percent in 2014-15 to 3.74 percent of GSDP in 2019-20. He also said that according to the RBI's 'State Finance 2020-21' data, Delhi's debt is lower than other states in terms of 'Debt as a percentage of GSDP' data.
https://finance.delhigovt.nic.
According to the details found on the 'State Finance 2020-21' data on the RBI website for Delhi, the state is still in debt of Rs 3,631 crores. The state drastically reduced its debt from Rs 33, 344 crores to Rs 3,326 crores in 2017 and 2018.
However, it is also estimated that in 2021 and 2022, the state will have an outstanding liability of Rs 15,866 crore and Rs 20,886 crore respectively.
https://rbi.org.in/Scripts/
Evidently, although Delhi has the lowest outstanding liability in the country, it is not yet debt-free.
