THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The Finance Department issued secret circular restricting treasury bills due to economic crunch. The new direction is not to allow bills unless it’s necessary. Additional Secretaries, Joint Secretaries, Deputy Secretaries, Under Secretaries and different section heads received this secret circular.

Only bills with urgent and unavoidable nature in the plan fund and non-plan fund need to be passed, reads the circular. The circular directs not to pass plan fund bills of the public sector, self-governing and grand in aid institutions and bills of central aid.

If the direction of the finance department is implemented, that will affect the day to day functioning of public sector institutions. 61.48 percent plan construction of local institutions has been completed till yesterday. Rs 7000 crores is the plan fund of local institutions. Plan fund of state government is Rs 22,150 crores. Bills of around half of this amount will reach the Treasury shortly. If bills are stuck in the treasury, which will affect contract works.

The government will take a loan of Rs 1800 crores from the public market and collect Rs 5000 crores from co-operative institutions to overcome this situation. However, there are outstanding debts for the government by taking loans to cover KSRTC pension and other welfare pensions.