By Admin 
To meet the financial needs of the state, state governments are now becoming more dependent on loans than before. State governments are raising money by issuing long-term bonds. Regarding the report of state finance budgets 2025-26 released by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), it has been said that about 76 percent of the total fiscal deficit (GFD) of the states will be met through borrowing from the market.
The report says that the debt level of many states remains a matter of concern. The debt of the states had come down to 28.1 percent of the GDP in March 2024, it is expected to increase again to about 29.2 percent at the end of the current financial year in March 2026. At present, Tamil Nadu (1.23 lakh crore) and Maharashtra (1.23 lakh crore) are on top in taking loans. The debt of states like Madhya Pradesh, Jharkhand, Uttarakhand and Karnataka has also increased.
The total market borrowing of states and union territories increased to Rs 10.73 lakh crore in the year 2024-25, which was Rs 10.07 lakh crore in the year 2023-24. In this way, there has been an increase of 6.6 percent on the basis of financial year.
Which states took more loans
Except Punjab, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Goa and UP, all other big states took more loans than the market in 2024-25. There was a big decline in the borrowings of Uttar Pradesh during this period. UP had taken a loan of Rs 49,618 crore in the year 2023-24, which reduced to Rs 4500 crore in the last financial year. Similarly, the debt of Bihar has decreased from Rs 47,612 crore to Rs 47,546 crore. The debt of Uttarakhand has increased significantly, which has increased from Rs 6300 crore to Rs 10,400 crore.
States issuing long term bonds
A total of 835 state government bonds were issued in 2024-25, out of which 100 old bonds were re-issued. Let us tell you that Chhattisgarh, Jammu and Kashmir, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Puducherry, Punjab, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu and West Bengal resorted to re-issue. The report shows that now state governments are issuing longer term bonds than before. In 2024-25, the share of 10-year bonds declined to 14.5 percent. The remaining bonds were for a period of 35 years.
States like Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Telangana and Jammu and Kashmir have issued bonds with tenures of more than 20 years. Of the total outstanding bonds at the end of March 2025, 7.2 per cent had a tenure of more than 20 years. One reason behind this is the decline in average interest rates.
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If Pakistan commits any misdeed on LoC on Republic Day, India will give a befitting reply, will be forced to plead.