AP stops all payments but salaries

Visakhapatnam: With a severe financial crisis prevailing, the state government has directed the district administration to stop all payments except salaries and pensions.

The first quarter of the 2019-20 financial year has seen a big decline in receipts. Almost all the line departments are facing a fund crisis and the district administrations are diverting money to meet emergency expenditure.

There are a large number of bills pending with the treasury and pay and accounts departments. Some departments have not paid for the expenses made during the general elections such as car rentals.

Reports said taxi companies were beginning to stage protests demanding that their bills be cleared. The Vizag district administration availed of cab services at Rs 60,000 per car per month. Even after five months there has been no payment. “Officials say that not only car rentals but also several other bills are pending, due to the lack of funds,” Visakha District Cab Owners and Drivers Association president B.M. Patrudu pointed out.

According to information, the departments have been requesting the government to release funds to clear pending bills.

“Normally, there are some problems in clearing the payments during February and March. Due to the big gap in receipts, the government is facing a difficult time to clear various payments. Salaries and pensions are the priority and are being cleared. It is true that several bills submitted during the tenure of the TD government are pending. There is pressure, as we have to attend to the government’s priority welfare programmes,” a senior official of the treasury department said  told this newspaper.