New Delhi: The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on Thursday revised the Ways and Means Advances (WMA) framework for state governments and Union Territories after entering into a new banking arrangement with the Government of National Capital Territory of Delhi (GNCTD).
In a press release, the central bank said that pursuant to an agreement signed with the GNCTD on January 5, 2026, the RBI will undertake the general banking business of the Delhi government with effect from January 9, 2026. As a result, the WMA limit for Delhi has been fixed at ₹890 crore, effective immediately.
WMA are temporary liquidity facilities extended by the RBI to state governments to help them manage mismatches in their cash flows. The limits, which also include Special Drawing Facility (SDF) and overdraft (OD) provisions, were last comprehensively reviewed and announced on June 28, 2024.
With the inclusion of Delhi under the revised framework, the aggregate WMA limit for all states and Union Territories has been increased to ₹61,008 crore, compared with the earlier ceiling of ₹60,118 crore.
Among major states, Uttar Pradesh has the highest WMA limit at ₹6,519 crore, followed by Maharashtra at ₹6,139 crore and Tamil Nadu at ₹4,582 crore, according to data released by the RBI. Karnataka has been allotted a limit of ₹4,010 crore, while Gujarat and Rajasthan have limits of ₹3,092 crore and ₹3,585 crore, respectively.
The revised limits come at a time when state governments are navigating tighter cash positions amid high expenditure commitments and evolving fiscal dynamics.
The RBI said that state- and UT-wise WMA limits have been detailed in an annexure to the notification and reiterated that the facility is meant to be used as a temporary measure to bridge short-term mismatches in receipts and payments, rather than as a source of long-term financing.