Centre’s fiscal deficit likely to meet revised estimates: ICRA

The Centre’s fiscal deficit touched 74.5 per cent of the annual target at the end of January 2025, according to the data released by Controller General of Accounts (CGA) on Friday.

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“A slight miss in capex relative to the target of Rs 10.2 lakh crore for FY25 can’t be entirely ruled out. Overall, fiscal deficit is likely print in line with the FY2025 RE of Rs 15.7 lakh crore or 4.8 per cent of GDP,” Investment Information and Credit Rating Agency’s (ICRA) CEO said.

In actual terms, the fiscal deficit — the gap between expenditure and revenue — was Rs 11,69,542 crore during the April-January 2024-25 period.

The deficit was 63.6 per cent of Revised Estimates (RE) of 2023-24 in the year-ago period.

The CGA data showed that the Centre’s tax revenue (net) was Rs 19.03 lakh crore, or 74.4 per cent of the RE of 2024-25. It was at 80.9 per cent during the corresponding year of the last financial year.

The total expenditure was at Rs 35.7 lakh crore, or 75.7 per cent of the RE.

In absolute terms, the fiscal deficit for the financial year ending March is estimated at Rs 15.69 lakh crore.