Tamil Nadu’s outstanding debt has doubled over the last five years and is now around Rs 10 lakh crore, Finance Minister Mariya Wilson said in her Budget speech in Chennai.
She said the government had already highlighted the scale of the debt soon after assuming office through a white paper on financial management. She added that on several fiscal indicators—such as the share of own tax revenue in the state’s gross domestic product, revenue deficit and fiscal deficit—Tamil Nadu lags behind comparable states.
According to the minister, interest payments and committed expenditures have been rising steadily as a share of total tax revenue. As a result, the fiscal space available to roll out new programmes has remained limited.
She said the government is working to fulfil public commitments in phases while also taking steps to pull the state out of financial stress. The state’s own tax revenue was put at Rs 2,54,575 crore.
The minister said it would take at least two years to set right the state’s financial management, and that a 15-year development plan would be pursued without seeking short-term political gains. For 2026–27, the revenue deficit was projected at Rs 57,775 crore, while the state’s debt in the 2026–27 Budget was estimated at Rs 10.98 lakh crore. The government plans to borrow Rs 1,07,445 crore and repay Rs 51,971 crore during 2026–27.
