New Delhi– India’s budgetary fiscal deficit for the April-August 2020-21 period stood at Rs 8.70 lakh crore, or 109.3 per cent of the budget estimates (BE).
The 2020-21 deficit — the difference between revenue and expenditure — had been pegged at Rs 7.96 lakh crore, as compared to the revised deficit of Rs 7.66 lakh crore for the last fiscal.
As per the Controller General of Accounts (CGA) data released on Wednesday, the fiscal deficit during the corresponding months of the previous fiscal was 78.7 per cent of that year’s target.
The Central government’s total expenditure stood at Rs 12.47 lakh crore (41 per cent of BE) while total receipts were Rs 3.77 lakh crore (16.8 per cent of BE).
“In the month of August 2020, revenue and capital spending recorded a double-digit contraction, which may reflect the impact of the expenditure management measures that had previously been put in place,” said Aditi Nayar, Principal Economist, ICRA.
“Given the exceptionally volatile monthly trend in revenue and capital expenditure so far, savings related to the spending restrictions imposed on various ministries and departments, which have been recently extended to Q3 FY2021, remain difficult to quantify.”
“On a monthly basis, the gross tax revenues of the GoI recorded a YoY rise, albeit subdued, for the first time in this fiscal year in August 2020, benefiting from higher excise collections as well as the favourable base related to the settlement of IGST in the year-ago period.”
Nikhil Gupta, Economist, Motilal Oswal Financial Services, said: “Although net taxes grew 24 per cent YoY, non-tax receipts fell sharply due to lower RBI dividends this year.”
“Total spending of the central government grew 6.2 per cent YoY, of which ‘Capex’ actually declined 1.3 per cent YoY and revex grew 7.1 per cent.” (IANS)
