With a population of around nine crore and cumulative debt of Rs 5.86 lakh crore, debt per capita in West Bengal stands at a conservative estimate of more than Rs 60,000.
When the ruling Trinamool Congress assumed office in 2011, the total debt of the state stood at Rs 1.97 lakh crore.
In the budget for 2023-24 presented in the state assembly on Tuesday, the West Bengal government has proposed to raise money from the market to the tune of Rs 79,000 crore, compared to the 2022-23 revised figure of Rs 75,000 crore.
Noted economist Ajitava Ray Chaudhuri said, "The present generation has contracted such a debt stock which has to be repaid by the future generation".
"If a such high debt is backed by equivalent assets created, the burden on future generation will be lower," Ray Chaudhuri said.
The state's tax revenue for the year 2023-24 is also projected to be Rs 89,000 crore, in contrast to Rs 79,500 crore in the revised figure for 2022-23.
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