Fiscal deficit crosses 96% of Budget estimates at the end of October

Apr-Oct fiscal deficit at Rs 5.25 lakh cr, compared with Rs 4.2 lakh cr in the same period a year earlier

The country's fiscal deficit in the first seven months of the financial year exceeded 96 per cent of the government's estimates for full 2017-18, showed official data released by the Controller General of Accounts (CGA) on Thursday.

At the end of September this year, the fiscal deficit had stood at 91.3 per cent of the full-year target.

The fiscal deficit during the April-October period of this year stood at Rs 5.25 lakh crore, compared with Rs 4.2 lakh crore in the same period a year earlier.

The revenue gap during the April-October period stood at Rs 4.01 lakh crore, against Rs 3.27 lakh crore a year earlier. The CGA data also showed that the net tax revenue received by the government during the April-October period stood at Rs 6.34 lakh crore.