Context:
This Handbook of Statistics on Indian States published by the Reserve Bank of India points to a deceleration in the growth of the pension bill for states and UTs during the year 2022-2023.
Key Highlights:
- Pension bills for seven states have decreased during FY23: Assam, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Odisha, Kerala, Telangana, and West Bengal.
- Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, and Bihar have seen the highest spikes in their pension bills.
- Pension remains a contentious issue due to opposition from the new pension scheme (NPS) and Old Pension Scheme (OPS).
RBI Handbook of Statistics about Indian States
Major Features:
- Economic Indicators: It informs about GSDP, finances of state government, macroeconomic aggregates, income levels, per capita income, and sectoral growth pattern.
- Government Finance and Expenditures: It contains information related to budgetary follows of state governments, revenues collected, expenditures incurred, and fiscal deficits.
- Social Indicators: It contains information related to population figures, literacy level, among others, and level of employment.
- Sectoral Data: It underlines the available sectoral data concerning agriculture, industry, and services.
- Pension and Employment Data: It gives information about pension expenditure and other liabilities in respect of a State budget.
- Infrastructure and Development: It allows the access to primary infrastructure indicators and data of the state related to development.
- Time Series Data: It helps to trace the trends of evolved long-run net economic and fiscal performance through state levels.
- Comparison of State: It enables to compare economic performance with regard to states and UTs.
