Centre borrows, transfers Rs 6,000 cr to 16 states for GST compensation

New Delhi, Oct 23 : The Central government on Friday said that it borrowed and transferred Rs 6,000 crore as first tranche to 16 states on account of GST compensation under the special borrowing window.
The Centre has evolved a special borrowing window to address the shortfall in the GST collection during the year 2020-2021. In all, 21 states and 2 Union Territories have opted for this special window involving back-to-back borrowing coordinated by the Ministry of Finance.
Out of these, five states did not have any shortfall on account of GST compensation.
The Rs 6,000 crore has been transferred to Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Bihar, Goa, Gujarat, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Meghalaya, Odisha, Tamil Nadu, Tripura, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand and the Union Territories of Delhi and Jammu and Kashmir.
The borrowing is at an interest rate of 5.19 percent. Tenor of borrowing is expected to be broadly in the range of 3 to 5 years.
The Centre plans to make weekly releases of Rs 6,000 crore to the states.