New Delhi: Financial deficit of the country is increasing continuously. The fiscal deficit has widened to Rs 9.78 lakh crore in the first eight months of the financial year 2022-23, which is 58.9 percent of the government’s target for the entire year. In the same period last fiscal, the daily fiscal deficit was 46.2 percent. The government has released these figures.
Increase in expenditure against income
During this period, the revenue of the government has increased to 14.65 lakh crore rupees while the expenditure of the government has been 24.43 lakh crore rupees. Which is 64.1 percent and 61.9 percent of the budget target for the current financial year. In which 14.23 lakh crore rupees have been received from the revenue. In which 12.25 lakh crore rupees have been received from tax and 1.98 lakh crore rupees from non-tax. Tax revenue is 63.3 percent of the budget target and non-tax revenue is 73.5 percent. Which is less than 73.5 percent and 91.8 percent in the same period last year.
Thus increased political deficit
This year in May 2022, to mitigate the impact of the steep rise in crude oil prices in the international market, the government reduced the excise duty on petrol diesel, which caused the government to lose revenue. So under the PM Ujjwala Yojana, provision was made to give 12 cylinders with a subsidy of Rs 200 per year and the fertilizer subsidy was increased, due to which the deficit has increased. It is believed that the fiscal deficit may be more than Rs 1 lakh crore in the current financial year due to additional expenditure by the government. The central government has increased capital expenditure by 40 percent to strengthen infrastructure from roads to railways, which has also widened the deficit. In these eight months, the government spent Rs 3.01 lakh crore on subsidies for food, fertilizers and petroleum products, which is 95 percent of the entire year’s budget. While in the same period last year it was 69 percent. Presenting the budget, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said that India will try to keep its fiscal deficit at 6.4 percent of GDP in the current fiscal year.