Hyderabad, March 21 -- Telangana deputy chief minister Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka on Friday presented a Rs.3,24,234 crore budget for 2026-27, an increase of nearly Rs.20,000 crore over the previous year, with a focus on welfare expansion, infrastructure, and easing the state's debt burden. Vikramarka, who holds the finance portfolio, projected a revenue expenditure of Rs.2,34,406 crore and a capital expenditure of Rs.47,267 crore. He said the state had recorded a growth rate of 10.7% in the Gross State Domestic Product (GSDP), which was estimated to be Rs.17,82,198 crore. "This is 2.7% higher than the country's average GDP growth rate of 8% during the same period. Likewise, the State's GSDP accounts for 5.0% of the national GDP, making Telangana a strong growth engine for the country," he said. A key highlight was the government's push to manage debt. The minister said loans worth Rs.25,612 crore taken by the previous regime at high interest rates have been restructured, extending repayment tenures to 20-39 years. Additionally, high-interest loans worth Rs.27,988 crore have been converted into lower-interest borrowings this year. Among major welfare measures, the government announced the "Indiramma Family Life Insurance Scheme," which will provide Rs.5 lakh insurance cover to 11.5 million families from June 2026, with a budget allocation of Rs.4,000 crore. Chief minister Revamnth Reddy hailed the budget calling it "futuristic" and in direction of achieving "Telangana Rising 2047" vision. However, the opposition parties in the state slammed the budget, with the BRS calling it bogus and the BJP saying it is a false and fancy budget. BJP state president said: "Overall, this budget has disappointed the aspirations of the people. It is an attempt to mislead the people of Telangana and was designed only for vote-bank politics."...