Budget 2018 might have Rs 740-bn allocation towards fertiliser subsidy

The amount is around 5.7% more than Budget Estimates of 2016-17 and 6.9% higher than Revised Estimates of 2016-17

The Union Budget 2018-19, expected to be tabled in Parliament next week, can allocate around Rs 740 billion for fertiliser subsidies, and the amount is around 5.7 per cent more than the Budget Estimates (BE) of 2016-17 and 6.9 per cent higher than the Revised Estimates (RE) of 2016-17.

Sources said the higher allocation could be on account of an expected increase in natural gas prices because of a projected rise in petroleum rates from $55 a barrel in 2017-18 to an average of $65 a barrel in 2018-19.

The Mid-Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF), tabled in Parliament last year, had