The Madhya Pradesh government will pay for the income tax on the salaries of serving chief ministers and the council of ministers, despite being under heavy debt and seeing its finances strained by the coronavirus pandemic. Faced with the severe economic impact of the Covid lockdown, the Shivraj Singh Chouhan administration had earlier halted salary increments for all government employees. It had also withheld a portion of the Dearness Allowance and arrears due from the seventh Pay Commission.