<h1>State defends ten cesses raising Rs 762 crore for welfare, says no extra burden; opposition warns consumer impact</h1> The state government defended ten cesses, saying they do not impose additional burden on ordinary citizens and that Rs 762 crore has been raised for public welfare; the revenue breakdown included Rs 185 crore from a motor vehicle cess, Rs 153 crore from a Panchayati Raj cess, Rs 145 crore from a COVID cess, Rs 112 crore from a milk cess, Rs 65.35 crore for cattle development, Rs 50.4 crore from a labour cess, Rs 21.78 crore for natural farming and Rs 10.8 crore from a milk-and-environment electricity cess. The government noted some cesses were introduced by the previous administration and that the COVID cess has been abolished; opposition legislators alleged the mining cess increased sand and grit prices and electricity cesses hit common consumers, prompting the finance department to draft stringent SOPs for cess expenditure.