(FE)
Finance Minister Arun Jaitley today fixed the fiscal deficit target for the fiscal year 2018-2019 at 3.3%, higher than previous year’s 3.2% target on account of shortfall in non-tax revenue. He also revised the fiscal deficit for the fiscal year for 2017-2018 upwards to 3.5% as against targeted 3.2%, which in absolute terms was about Rs 5.95 lakh crore.
He said that the government will receive the GST revenue for 11 months, which will have the fiscal impact. He said that the revised estimate for FY18 is Rs 21.57 lakh crore as against estimated Rs 21.47 lakh crore. Reacting to the fiscal deficit target, Dr Arun Singh, Lead Economist, Dun & Bradstreet, said that fiscal slippages for FY18 are disappointing, but it was also widely expected.
In the Budget 2017, Arun Jaitley had fixed the fiscal deficit target to 3.2% of the GDP, which in absolute terms worked out to be nearly 5.46 lakh crore. As the year progressed, risks of an overshoot rose. April to November 2017 fiscal math is precarious at 112% of the full-year target vs 86% in the corresponding period last year. The revenue deficit is worse off at 152% of the this year’s budget vs 98% last year.
