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States' salary bills balloon 2.5 times in 10 yrs: CAG
The Morning Standard
|September 22, 2025
THE salary bills of states have ballooned 2.5 times in the 10 years to 2022-23, reaching ₹16.6 lakh crore, while subsidy bills have more than trebled to ₹3.09 lakh crore, according to a report published by the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) of India.
The State Finances Publication 2025 further shows that public debt raised by states grew 3.4 times over the same period to ₹59.6 lakh crore.
In FY 2022-23, states' committed expenditure on salaries, interest payments, and pensions constituted a significant portion of their finances, accounting for about 43.49% of total revenue expenditure. Salaries formed the largest component of this spending.
Expenditure on salaries, pensions, and interest payments as a percentage of revenue expenditure varied widely-from as high as 74% in Nagaland to 32% in Maharashtra. In 2022-23,
15 states reported committed expenditure exceeding 50% of their revenue expenditure, seven states between 40-50%, and six states below 40%.
This story is from the September 22, 2025 edition of The Morning Standard.
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