Govt's Fiscal Deficit Touches 59 Per Cent Of Full-Year Target In November At Rs 9.78 Lakh Crore

For 2022-23, the fiscal deficit of the government is estimated to be Rs 16.61 lakh crore or 6.4 per cent of the GDP

The government's fiscal deficit at the end of November touched 59 per cent of the full-year Budget estimate, according to data released by the Controller General of Accounts (CGA) on Friday. In actual terms, the fiscal deficit, the difference between expenditure and revenue, was Rs 9.78 lakh crore during the April-November period of 2022-23.

In the corresponding period last year, the deficit was 46.2 per cent of the budget estimates of 2021-22. For 2022-23, the fiscal deficit of the government is estimated to be Rs 16.61 lakh crore or 6.4 per cent of the GDP. 

The total receipts during April-November stood at Rs 14.64 lakh crore or 64.1 per cent of the current year's Budget estimate. In the comparable year-ago period, total receipts had hit 69.8 percent of the Budget estimate.

The Centre’s total expenditure during April-November stood at Rs 24.42 lakh crore, or 61.9 per cent of the Budget estimate, which is higher than 59.6 per cent in the year-ago period. The net tax revenue for April-November stood at Rs 12.25 lakh crore, 63.3 per cent of the Budget estimate, against 73.5 per cent in the corresponding period of last financial year.

Capital expenditure in April-November was Rs 4.47 lakh crore, 59.6 per cent of the full year target. In the comparable year-ago period, it stood at 49.4 per cent of the Budget estimate.

Disinvestments during the April-November period were Rs 28,399 crore, which is 44 per cent of the annual target. In the corresponding period of the last fiscal year, it stood at 12 per cent of the full year's target.

Meanwhile, India’s current account balance clocked a deficit of $36.4 billion in the second quarter (Q2) of the current fiscal (Q2 FY23), forming 4.4 per cent of the gross domestic product (GDP), according to a data released by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on Thursday.

The current account balance recorded a deficit of $36.4 billion in July-September 2022-23, up from $18.2 billion (2.2 per cent of GDP) in the first quarter of the fiscal and $9.7 billion (1.3 per cent of GDP) in the year ago period.