The Assam government has taken a huge financial hit because of the lockdown imposed to contain the spread of coronavirus, but the good news is that Dispur can absorb the losses for three months.
According to senior cabinet minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, the state used to generate revenue to the tune of Rs 1,200 crore around this time but it has gone down to almost nothing — Rs 10-12 crore now.
“Revenue generation now is insignificant but there is nothing to worry given our inherent strength. We can cope with this loss for three months but I can’t say what will happen after three months. It could become difficult if the lockdown persists or there is no vaccine for Covid-19 or if the situation remains unchanged,” he told a section of the media on Saturday.
Assam has 29 Covid-19 patients, of whom one died on Friday. Barring one, the other affected are linked to the Tablighi Jamaat congregation.
Sarma, who holds the finance, health and education portfolios, and whose efforts on the health front have been praised even by his critics, said Dispur was hoping to get some assistance from the Centre’s Covid-19 fund and the DoNER ministry, something which could soften the revenue blow.
There is also a move to open liquor shops, a major revenue-earner, in the range of about Rs 250 crore a month, and tea gardens, with strict safety restrictions in place.
Talking about its inherent strength, the state government has promised to pay salaries to its employees before Bihu, at a time several states have gone for a salary cut.
“We will inform our employees if the need arises to cut salary. The employees have pledged their support and have also contributed generously to the fund to tackle coronavirus,” Sarma said.
On the state’s preparedness to check the spread of the virus, Sarma said Sunday afternoon’s crucial cabinet meeting would decide on the move to set up six temporary hospitals.
“It will be a collective decision. Since each hospital will cost Rs 50 crore and will last only for four to five years, there could be questions on whether we can utilise the funds to create permanent assets. We will also decide on post-lockdown measures but we will go by the decision the Centre takes on the lockdown,” Sarma said.
Most in Dispur are in favour of a conditional lockdown.
IOC move
Indian Oil Corporation on Saturday said it had ramped up its LPG bottling capacity in the Northeast by implementing night shift operation at two of its major plants at North Guwahati and Silchar to improve supply in the region.
“Earlier, in LPG plants, bottling was carried out in two shifts, starting from 6am to 2pm in the morning and from 2pm to 10pm in the evening. Now a third shift from 10pm to 6am has been introduced in two high-capacity plants at North Guwahati and Silchar to further increase the availability of cooking LPG cylinders,” G. Ramesh, IOC chief general manager and Assam Oil Division head, said in a statement.
The AOD office looks after the marketing activities of IOC across the northeastern states.
“Due to the lockdown imposed by the government to prevent the spread of Covid-19, the consumption of domestic LPG has gone up in many places. Hence, Indian Oil has started bottling 24x7 in two major bottling plants to be able to fulfil the demand while our customers can stay home and be safe,” he added.
He also requested customers to book a cylinder only if it was absolutely necessary.
Additional reporting by Rokibuz Zaman in Guwahati
