A day after taking oath, the United Democratic Front (UDF) government in Kerala on Tuesday formed an expert committee to study the state’s finances and prepare a white paper within 10 days.
Chief Minister V D Sathisan chaired the first meeting of the special committee on Tuesday, an official familiar with the matter said. Former State Planning Board Vice Chairman KR Jyothilal will chair the committee which will also include KR Jyothilal, Additional Chief Secretary (Finance), D Narayana, former Director, Gulati Institute of Finance and Taxation, and C Veeramani, Director, Center for Development Studies, Thiruvananthapuram.
The White Paper will help the state government find new ways to boost revenues and plan a timetable for implementing many of its election guarantees, including increasing welfare pensions, aid for female university students, and free bus rides for women on state-run buses.
In a press meet after taking the oath of office on Monday, Sathisean promised that the government would take stock of the state’s current liabilities in terms of salaries and pensions – areas where it is incurring huge expenses – as well as sectors showing a decline in revenues. The white paper will also address the handling of state finances under the decade-long LDF regime under former chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan.
In 2023, Sathisan, the then leader of the opposition, presented a ‘white paper’ in the Assembly to report on the country’s heavy public debt.
After selecting Sathisean as chief minister, senior Congress leader AK Antony asked the public to give the new administration some “breathing room” to implement its promises.
