Ramaswami: A common concern among the states during the country-wide lockdown to contain the COVID-19 pandemic has been the central government’s delay in release of Goods and Services Tax (GST) arrears and cuts in the budgetary allocations to states. At a time when state governments are expecting special packages from the Centre for combating disruptions due to the COVID-19 outbreak, the Narendra Modi government is yet to address the fiscal demands. On April 20, the Union Finance Ministry sanctioned the release of Rs 46,038 crore to states as their share of central taxes and duties due for three months till March, stating that the tax devolution was made as per the recommendations of the 15th Finance Commission. However, it has been reported that the Centre has slashed the installment by 17.81% to all states. For instance, while Telangana was expecting to receive Rs 1,192 crore through the installment, the Centre has allocated only Rs 982 crore.