With lower revenue realisation and rise in expenditure, India’s fiscal deficit hit 96.1 per cent to Rs 5.25 lakh crore at the end of October of the Budget estimate for 2017- 18, according to data released by the Controller General of Accounts (CGA) on Thursday.
During the same period in 2016-17, the deficit stood at 79.3 per cent of the target. For 2017-18, the Government aims to bring down the fiscal
deficit to 3.2 per cent of GDP. last fiscal, it had met the 3.5 per cent target.
However, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said he intends to be on track on lowering fiscal deficit even as the figure for April-October hit 96.1 per cent of Budget estimates. “The Fiscal Responsibility and Budget Management or FRBM report is under consideration. The last three years, we have an exemplary record as far as maintaining that glide path is concerned. We intend to move on that track,” Jaitley said at the HT leadership Summit here.
The Government has budgeted to bring down fiscal deficit to 3.2 per cent of GDP in 2017-18, from 3.5 per cent in the previous year. However, the CGA data showed that the Government’s revenue receipts were at Rs 7.29 lakh crore in the seven months of the current fiscal, which work out to
be 48.1 per cent of the Budget estimate of Rs 15.15 lakh crore for the entire year.
The receipts, comprising taxes and other items, were at 50.7 per cent of the target in the year-ago period. As per the data, the Government’s total expenditure was Rs 12.92 lakh crore at October-end, or 60.2 per cent of the Budget estimate. It was 58.2 per cent of the Budget estimate a year ago.