Fiscal deficit at 135% of BE on higher capex; spending in Nov rises 250%

A sharp uptick in capital spending in November to boost the economy led to further widening of the Centre’s fiscal deficit to 135 per cent of the full year’s Budget Estimates (BE) in the first eight months of 2020-21.
 

This is despite a reasonable pick-up in tax revenues during the month as economic activity gradually reverts to normalcy amid the pandemic.
 

The gap between the Centre’s revenue and expenditure touched Rs 10.7 trillion between April and November. This is 33 per cent higher than the corresponding period last year and 35.1 per cent higher than the Budget estimates for the