Telangana has secured only Rs 4,000 crore from the Centre during the current financial year, far short of the more than Rs 24,000 crore the State government had expected to receive. Delays by State government departments in submitting Utilisation Certificates are holding up the release of funds under various Central grants and schemes.

Chief Secretary Sanjay Jaju has now directed all departmental Secretaries to give the highest priority to securing funds due to the State under Centrally Sponsored Schemes. He wants immediate, coordinated and time-bound measures to pull that money in from the Centre.

Why the paperwork is holding up the money

State governments must submit Utilisation Certificates to the Centre to secure funds under various grants and schemes. The certificates are a requirement for the release of grants and funds. Telangana has been slow to submit the certificates needed to secure that money, and the lag is now hitting the State’s books directly.

The timing could not be worse. Non-tax revenue generation has fallen short of expectations, so the delay in securing Central funds is adding to Telangana’s financial stress. The gap between what was expected and what has arrived is more than Rs 20,000 crore.

Infrastructure is where the damage shows first. The shortfall has severely affected the execution of development projects, particularly infrastructure works.

The matching share trap

Some Centrally Sponsored Schemes add a second hurdle. For these, the State must release its matching share in advance to qualify for Central funds. Telangana’s financial constraints have delayed the release of matching grants under several programmes, which means the State is struggling to meet the very condition that unlocks outside money.

In practical terms, the State cannot simply wait for the Centre to act. It has to put up its own share first, and the same cash pressure that slows its spending is blocking the matching contributions that would bring Central money in.

A department-by-department push

Jaju’s review covered Agriculture, Panchayat Raj and Rural Development, Education and Scholarships, Home, Rural Water Supply, Housing, Municipal Administration and Urban Development, Transport, Animal Husbandry, Fisheries and other departments. He went through the department-wise status of Central funds due to the State.

The review also covered pending onboarding and compliance requirements, expenditure reporting and the closure of SNA accounts. Each of these is a point where a file can stall, and Jaju made clear that stalled files are no longer acceptable.

His message to departmental Secretaries was blunt. Identify and resolve pending issues, complete the required formalities, and improve coordination between departments so that funds are released and used on time.

Jaju put the priority in one line:

All pending matters should be pursued on a priority basis, with clear responsibility for follow-up and timely completion of the prescribed procedures.

Taking the fight to New Delhi

The Chief Secretary also directed departmental Secretaries to coordinate with the concerned Additional Secretaries in the Central government. Where needed, pending matters are to be taken up with the appropriate authorities in Delhi to expedite the release of funds.

He stressed that Central assistance is essential to implementing development and welfare programmes. Departments were told to ensure that avoidable delays do not arise from pending procedural requirements, incomplete documentation or poor coordination.

For Telangana, the stakes are concrete. Projects that depend on Central money are waiting, and the State is being asked to clean up its own paperwork and advance its own matching funds at the same time. The coming weeks will show whether the directive turns into faster releases or remains another round of instructions while the shortfall grows.

Source: Telangana Today reporting from Hyderabad, published 26 October 2026.