(FE)
The government wants to give a cash booster to Corporate India and small businesses to invigorate the investment cycle but the Centre itself and assorted agencies owned and managed by it owed a staggering Rs 5 lakh crore to them and state-run agencies like FCI at the end of the last fiscal. Though there have been concerted efforts at least at the level of the central government to clear the backlog, unpaid dues of the general government to the businesses for various goods and services availed are still very high.
According to a Niti Aayog assessment, the central government departments themselves had dues of Rs 1.5 lakh crore to the industry at end-March 2019. Additionally, the outstanding dues of National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) to contractors and investors stood at about Rs 50,000 crore then while state power distribution companies (discoms) had dues of Rs 60,000 crore to power producers. On their part, state transport corporations owed several thousands of crores to their suppliers like oil marketing companies.
Sources said the Niti Aayog estimate was shared with policymakers in the government, a reason why the expenditure department had prevailed on CPSEs and other agencies and asked them to fast-track pending payments. Thanks to this effort, in September, the CPSEs/agencies have paid close to Rs 60,000 crore and are in the process of making further payments.
