India's Fiscal Deficit For April-October 2024 Touches 46.5% Of Full Year Target - Full Data

The Centre's fiscal deficit at the end of the first seven months of the financial year 2024-25 touched 46.5 per cent of the full-year target, government data showed on Friday.

In absolute terms, the fiscal deficit -- the gap between the government's expenditure and revenue -- was at Rs 7,50,824 crore during the April-October period, according to data released by the Controller General of Accounts (CGA).

The deficit stood at 45 per cent of the Budget Estimates (BE) in the corresponding period of 2023-24. In the Union Budget, the government projected to bring down the fiscal deficit to 4.9 per cent of gross domestic product (GDP) in the current 2024-25 financial year. The deficit was 5.6 per cent of the GDP in 2023-24.

In absolute terms, the government aims to contain the fiscal deficit at Rs 16,13,312 crore during the current fiscal. The revenue-expenditure data of the Union government for the first seven months of 2024-25 showed that the net tax revenue was about Rs 13 lakh crore or 50.5 per cent of the budget estimate for the current fiscal. The net tax revenue collection was 55.9 per cent in September-end of 2023.

The central government's total expenditure in the seven months through October stood at Rs 24.7 lakh crore or 51.3 per cent of budget estimate. Expenditure was 53.2 per cent of budget estimate in the year-ago period.

Of the total expenditure, Rs 20 lakh crore was in the revenue account and Rs 4.66 lakh crore in the capital account.

Commenting on the data, Aditi Nayar, Chief Economist, ICRA, said the government of India's fiscal deficit compressed to Rs 7.5 lakh crore or 46.5 per cent of the FY25 BE in April-October FY25, from Rs 8 lakh crore in April-Oct FY24, led by the RBI's dividend payment as well as the continuing YoY contraction in the capital expenditure.

"The double tranche of tax devolution released to the states dampened the net tax collections of the GoI in October 2024. Additionally, a sharp jump in revenue expenditure in the month of October 2024 led to a YoY rise in the fiscal deficit in that month (Rs 2.8 lakh crore in October 2024 versus Rs 1 lakh crore in Oct 2023)," she said.

The CGA data also showed that out of the total revenue expenditure, Rs 5,96,347 crore was on account of interest payments and Rs 2,48,670 crore towards major subsidies. 

Out of the total receipts up to October, Rs 7.22 lakh crore has been transferred to state governments as devolution of share of taxes by government of India, which is Rs 1.94 lakh crore higher than the previous year.

Fiscal deficit is the difference between the total expenditure and revenue of the government. It is an indication of the total borrowing that is needed by the government.