Govt achieves fiscal deficit target of 4.8% for FY25, shows data

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The central government managed to meet the fiscal deficit target of 4.8 per cent of the GDP for 2024-25, according to the provisional data released by the Controller General of Accounts on Friday.

 

In the revised estimates (RE) presented to Parliament in February, the government had pegged the fiscal deficit or gap between expenditure and revenue at Rs 15,69,527 crore or 4.8 per cent of the gross domestic product (GDP).

 

The CGA data showed that the fiscal deficit in actual terms was Rs 15,77,270 crore, or 100.5 per cent, of the RE.

 

The economic growth in nominal terms for the fiscal 2024-25 is estimated at Rs 3,30,68,145 crore, according to the GDP data released earlier in the day.

 

The government received Rs 30.78 lakh crore or 97.8 per cent of RE 2024-25 of total receipts during 2024-25.

 

This comprised Rs 24.99 lakh crore tax revenue (net to Centre), Rs 5.37 lakh crore of non-tax revenue and Rs 41,818 crore of non-debt capital receipts, the CGA data showed.

 

Non-debt capital receipts consist of recovery of loans (Rs 24,616 crore) and miscellaneous capital receipts (Rs 17,202 crore).

 

According to the CGA data, Rs 12,86,885 crore has been transferred to state governments as devolution of share of taxes by the government up to March 2025, which is Rs 1,57,391 crore higher than the previous year.

 

The total expenditure incurred by the Centre is Rs 46.55 lakh crore (98.7 per cent of corresponding RE 2024-25), out of which Rs 36.03 lakh crore is on revenue account and Rs 10.52 lakh crore is on capital account.

 

Out of the total revenue expenditure, Rs 11.16 lakh crore is on account of interest payments, and Rs 3.88 lakh crore is on account of major subsidies.

 

Commenting on the CGA data, Icra Chief Economist Aditi Nayar said the fiscal deficit marginally exceeded the RE for FY2025, albeit led by a welcome overshooting in capital expenditure amid a less palatable miss on the receipts side being largely offset by considerable savings in revenue expenditure in the fiscal.

 

"The upward revision in the FY2025 nominal GDP number also augurs well for meeting the deficit and debt to GDP targets for FY2026," she said.