Tamil Nadu GSDP grows 15.98%, debt rises to ₹8.53 lakh crore: CAG
CAG report shows Tamil Nadu's GSDP grew 15.98% in 2024-25, while debt reached ₹8.53 lakh crore, within fiscal limits.
Tamil Nadu's Gross State Domestic Product (GSDP) recorded a growth of 15.98 per cent in 2024-25, up from 13.34 per cent in the previous fiscal, according to the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) of India's report on state finances tabled in the Assembly on Tuesday.
The state's total debt stood at ₹8.53 lakh crore, with the debt-to-GSDP ratio at 27.38 per cent. This remains within the 28.90 per cent ceiling set by the Fifteenth Finance Commission and the Tamil Nadu Fiscal Responsibility Act.
The state's per capita income continued to outpace the national average, and its contribution to the national GDP was 9.43 per cent during the year.
However, the revenue deficit widened marginally from ₹45,121 crore in 2023-24 to ₹45,840 crore in 2024-25. The state fell short of the Fifteenth Finance Commission's projection of achieving a revenue surplus despite the GSDP expansion.
Committed expenditure — covering salaries, pensions, and interest payments — totalled ₹1,76,676 crore, accounting for 53.75 per cent of revenue expenditure and 62.47 per cent of total revenue receipts.
Interest payments consumed nearly 21 per cent of revenue receipts, with the share on an upward trend since 2022-23, reflecting the growing debt burden.
Subsidies formed 16 per cent of total revenue expenditure, rising by ₹14,854 crore (39.35 per cent) over the previous year. The increase was driven largely by the Magalir Urimai Thogai scheme and power tariff support extended to TNEB on behalf of farmers using pump sets.