Fiscal Deficit: Jaitley sticks to fiscal discipline

Fiscal Deficit set at 3.2% of GDP as FM targets higher capital expenditure

Finance Minister Arun Jaitley has chosen to deviate marginally from the path of fiscal consolidation by budgeting the fiscal deficit for 2017-18 at 3.2 per cent of GDP against the target of 3 per cent set under the existing Fiscal Responsibility and Budget Management (FRBM) framework.
 
This, however, marks a steady improvement in the fiscal deficit over the last four Budgets that Jaitley has presented, from 4.1 per cent in 2014-15.
 
Jaitley has signalled the government’s commitment to fiscal consolidation, creating at the same time fiscal space to boost spending to lift the economy reeling from demonetisation and