Revenue expenditure to decline 8.6% in FY22, show Budget documents

Small savings, which will chip in a record Rs 4.8 trillion, breathe life into stimulus

While the central government plans to raise capital expenditure by 26 per cent in the upcoming year, current spending to cover establishment expenses, welfare schemes and interest payments is set to fall 2.7 per cent to Rs 29.3 trillion in 2021-22, from Rs 30.1 trillion in FY21.

What could be worrisome is that revenue expenditure would fall 8.6 per cent in FY22 if we exclude interest payments, which go into servicing outstanding debt, Budget documents show.

The continuing fiscal stimulus is thus heavily tilted towards capex, to the extent that it chips away a part of revenue spending. Accounting for