HYDERABAD:  Despite almost nil revenue in April owing to the lockdown, Telangana enjoys an enviable reputation among investors. An attestation to this fact is the State receiving 262 competitive bids for its securities of Rs 2,000 crore, the auction for which was conducted by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on Monday. As many as nine States raised the State Development Loans (SDL) on Monday, among whom Telangana received an overwhelming response. 

Besides, Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu saw a good number of competitive bids. “While the neighbouring Andhra Pradesh received only 63 competitive bids for Rs 1,000 crore, Telangana received 141 and 121 bids respectively for ten and eightyear- tenure securities. This indicates the confidence that investors have in Telangana,” sources said. Telangana raising Rs 2,000-crore SDL comes as a major relief to the State government, as it has only received Rs 100 crore revenue this month so far.

With this loan amount, the State may not face any hindrance in paying 50 per cent of the salary of State government employees in May. During the auction on Monday, Telangana was offered loans at an attractive rate of interest. According to the RBI website, the State raised Rs 1,000 crore from its eight-year-tenure securities at an interest rate of 7.5 per cent. Another Rs 1,000 crore was raised with ten-year-tenure securities at an interest rate of 7.65 per cent. The State also received 28 non-competitive bids, whereas Andhra Pradesh received only six non-competitive ones. As many as nine States, including Telangana, raised SDL to the tune of Rs 12,128 crore on Monday.