The country’s fiscal deficit narrowed to 5.75 per cent of the gross domestic product (GDP) in 2011-12, compared with 5.9 per cent in the revised estimates, despite the actual GDP being slightly lower than that assumed in the Budget. This was because expenditure was also less than that estimated in Budget 2012-13.
Fiscal deficit stood at Rs 5.09 lakh crore in 2011-12, lower than the revised estimate of Rs 5.21 lakh crore. Actual GDP stood at Rs 88.5 lakh crore, against the Budget estimate of Rs 89.12 lakh crore.
The government’s total expenditure, at Rs 12.9 lakh crore, was 1.5 per cent lower than the revised estimate of Rs 13.18 lakh crore. The actual outlay accounted for 14.6 per cent of the GDP. At Rs 4.13 lakh crore, Plan expenditure was 3.1 per cent lower than the revised estimate of Rs 5.26 lakh crore, while non-Plan expenditure stood at Rs 88.49 lakh crore, compared with the revised estimate of Rs 89.21 lakh crore.
At Rs 7.56 lakh crore, the government’s revenue receipts were 1.4 per cent lower than the revised estimate.
Disinvestment in Oil and Natural Gas Corporation and the National Buildings Construction Corporation initial public offering contributed to the government raising Rs 13,894 crore through offloading its stake in 2011-12.
Anis Chakravarty, senior director, Deloitte India, said, “After the announcement of the revised estimates, the government did take some measures to bring down the fiscal deficit.”
“To meet the fiscal deficit target of 5.1 per cent in 2012-13, we will require policy action to keep subsidies down,” said Prime Ministers’ Economic Advisory Council Chairman, C Rangarajan.