The central government's fiscal deficit touched Rs 5.42 lakh crore, accounting for 32.6 percent of the annual target in the five months through August 2022, as per official data released on Friday, September 30.

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The fiscal deficit is a reflection of government borrowings from the market.

As per the data released by the Controller General of Accounts (CGA), the government's receipts, including taxes, stood at Rs 8.48 lakh crore or 37.2 percent of the Budget Estimates (BE) for 2022-23.

During the year-ago period, the collection was 40.9 percent of BE 2021-22. The tax revenue stood at about Rs 7 lakh crore or 36.2 percent of this year's BE.

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The central government's total expenditure was Rs 13.9 lakh crore or 35.2 percent of the BE 2022-23. It was 36.7 percent of BE 2021-22. For 2022-23, the fiscal deficit of the government is estimated to be Rs 16.61 lakh crore or 6.4 percent of the GDP.

According to the data, capital expenditure was 33.7 percent of the full-year budget target in the current fiscal compared to 31 percent in the corresponding period last year, as per the monthly account of the Union government up to August.

In February, while presenting Budget 2022, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman set the fiscal deficit target at 6.4 percent of GDP for 2022-23 starting April, compared to 6.7 percent in the previous fiscal year.

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First Published:Sept 30, 2022 5:14 PM IST