31 August 2021 01:52 am Views - 508
By Ajantha Kumara Agalakada
The Government has decided to strictly restrict state expenses owing to the grave financial crisis the Government was facing.Finance Minister Basil Rajapaksa has informed the Cabinet that state revenue has decreased drastically as the economy is facing a grave crisis due to the Covid pandemic and that it was not sufficient even for recurrent expenditure.
The Minister has informed the Cabinet that the recurrent expenditure for this year may exceed the estimated amount due to the vaccination, additional expenses in the health sector and provision of relief allowance.The Finance Ministry has directed Ministry secretaries to suspend projects such as building constructions,renovation of buildings which were not commenced despite allocation of funds.
The Government has also decided to suspend all recruitments for state service.
The Finance Ministry has also informed Ministry secretaries to submit a detailed report on the money which can be saved by restricting expenses.